Rebellion
by Chakat StarDust
Summary: AU Yoh and Hao are twin brothers separated at birth. Yoh has lived the life of a rich family, while Hao was forced to fight for his life. When they meet, they begin a journey to overthrow the government that decreed them to be forced apart.
1. Chapter 1

Wolf: Hello, new story! I hope you all enjoy it! It's a bit of a sci-fi-ish story, so it may be a little different from what you're used to with me. Well, I own nothing but the plot, so on with the story.

Keiko Asakura sat on the birthing bed, pale-faced and streaked with sweat. The labour had been long and hard so far and she was tired. Her black cat ears folded back and her long tail lashed as another contraction ripped through her body.

"How much longer now?" Yohmei demanded.

"Not long." The midwife assured. And indeed she told the truth. After another twenty minutes Keiko let out one last scream and the baby was out. Yohmei took it immediately and inspected it. He sighed at the sight of two large, black and tan German shepherd-like ears, and a stubby, shaggy tail. The tiny child's mouth opened and he let out a small, dog-like wail.

"Take this dog far away, leave it in the care of some of its own kind." Yohmei instructed the bodyguard leaning against the door.

"No!" Keiko cried. Yohmei rounded on his daughter with a hiss, grey cat ears laid flat against his balding skull.

"You've already brought disgrace on this family by coupling with that slave, do not bring more upon us by keeping the evidence of your folly." Keiko lay back on the bed, weeping a little as the bodyguard took away her son.

"Master, there's another baby coming." The midwife called. Yohmei's ears perked and he watched closely as Keiko began to push again. The second son came easier than the first. Yohmei breathed a sigh of relief as he saw the small black kitten's ears and long tail curled around the little child's body.

"At least some good has come out of this." He murmured, handing the baby to Keiko. "What will be his name?" He asked gruffly as the baby began to suckle, staring up at the two of them with tranquil black eyes.

"Yoh."

%&%&%&%

"Ok class, now who can tell me the three sentient species on this planet?" The teacher looked up at her eager class.

"The Felids, the Avians, and the Canids." One of the students replied. Yoh Asakura, seven years old, flicked one ear in disinterest and tried to go back to his nap.

"Very good, now who can tell me what role each species plays?"

"The Felids, that's us, are the rulers of the planet. We are the most intelligent and the most advanced. The Avians come after us, they are considered equals because they are highly intelligent, but no one knows much about them because they stick to themselves." The student took a breath. "Aaannddd, the Canids are the lowest of the sentient species. They are intelligent enough to simply be slaves to us higher creatures." The bell rang.

"Very good, class dismissed."

Yoh Asakura trudged out of class, dodging the half dozen spit balls and wadded up papers that flew his way from the other students. He didn't understand why they shunned him and called him names. His chestnut bangs dangled in his eyes and he brushed them out impatiently.

Outside he saw Amidamaru, his personal bodyguard, waiting for him by a hovercar. Amidamaru was tall and muscular, with white, long spiky hair and sharp black eyes. His ears and tail were those of a snow leopard.

"How was school today Master Yoh?" He asked as they settled into the hovercar's seats.

"Ok." Yoh replied distractedly. "Amidamaru?"

"Yes, little Master?"

"Why do they say that Dogs are less intelligent than us?" Yoh asked. "Horohoro always can figure out my riddles and learns things as fast as I do." Amidamaru gave his young charge a sharp look.

"Horohoro is one of the slaves on the estate?" Yoh nodded.

"He works on the grounds with his family, we play together."

"Has anyone ever seen you two playing together?" Yoh was startled by the sharpness of Amidamaru's voice.

"I don't think so."

"Yoh, you have to be very careful, understand?" Amidamaru beseeched. "Because your family is very important you will not be affected if someone finds you, but if the Angels of Justice find out, they will kill your friend."

"The Angels of Justice?" Yoh asked, round-eyed.

"The government." Amidamaru said shortly. "I'll explain more to you when you're older, but you must remember to be careful about what you talk about to people, and who sees you with slaves."

"I just don't think it's fair, that's all." Yoh pouted. Amidamaru sighed.

"Life rarely is, Young Master."

%&%&%&%

"Hao! Hao! Get down from there!" Hao, eight years old, looked down at the old man who had taken care of him his whole life. Goldva was his name. He had long grey hair and large coyote-like ears and tail. Hao sighed and hopped down from the tree.

"Hao, have you been fighting again?" Goldva admonished, touching the new bruises on his young charge's face. Hao recoiled, regal ears folding back.

"They called me a shrimp." The boy replied sullenly. Already at eight years of age Hao was whip-thin and heavily muscled from toiling in the rice plantation he lived on.

"If you don't stop fighting with people, they're going to take you away." Goldva scolded. Hao snorted derisively. "Oh yes, you think you're so smart, but it's scrappy little things like you that wind up in the pits."

Suddenly both their ears perked up and they watched as a transport vehicle circled over their little shack to land with a flurry of dust. Two Felids, big, imposing guys in white uniforms, got out.

"Take the boy." The leader ordered from inside the vehicle. One of the Cats grabbed Goldva to hold him back while the other grabbed Hao. Hao roared and reared back to bite the hand that held him. The Cat smacked him hard and then gagged him with a tough rawhide strip. He dragged the kicking and screaming boy to the back of the transport.

Hao was thrown in and a collar was chained around his neck, chaining him to the floor. His wrists were then grabbed and cuffed behind his back so that he was forced to kneel with his hands behind his back on the hard bed of the transport.

Even in this submissive posture Hao did not stop struggling with his captor, managing to head-butt the Cat that was securing him before the man backed out of the transport and slammed the doors. Hao growled in the darkness, wrestling against his restraints futilely.

The transport took off and Hao was bounced slightly around as it flew. The movements bruised his neck where the collar choked him. When the transport finally stopped Hao was panting and his muscles strained in the effort to keep him upright.

The Cat that got him out simply unhooked the collar from its chain and dragged him out by it. Still gagged, Hao could not snap at him. They seemed to be under some kind of building. Hao's ears twitched at the sound of what sounded like a lot of people either cheering or roaring. His nose quivered at the metallic scent of blood and the cloying smell of fear, anger and adrenaline mixed in together.

A low rumble escaped his throat as his aggressive instincts came out.

"Well, looks like we picked ourselves a little scrapper." His captor chuckled darkly as he dragged him up a ramp and into a caged in corridor that ended in a door. Hao could hear the cheering quite loud coming from that door.

"Alright, now all you have to do is go in there and fight whoever comes out with you, understand?" The Cat asked, uncuffing him and pulling off the collar. "The only way you win is if you kill your opponent, doesn't matter how."

Hao then realized that what Goldva had feared had come true. He had been sent to the Pits. The stuff of slaves' and criminals' nightmares, the Pits was entertainment for the Cat masses, those that loved bloodshed and ruthless killing.

The Cat pulled the rawhide rope from his mouth and then stepped out of the cage, bolting Hao in. The door leading to the amphitheatre slowly creaked open and Hao stepped through. Walls ten feet high separated him from the cheering mass of Cats that sat all around the bowl shaped arena.

Terror and anger competed in his belly, making him feel sick. A sudden bellow made him look up. Another Dog only a couple of years older than he was stood at the other end of the field, glaring at him balefully, scratches and scars on his body marking him as a veteran of this bloody sport.

The challenger bellowed again and charged at Hao. Hao neatly side-stepped him and swung out a fist, smashing into his opponent's back with enough force to send him rocketing forward a few steps. The other boy turned back with a snarl but Hao was ready with a forceful fist to the jaw.

He heard something crack and his challenger let out a strangled yelp-howl of pain. Hao had broken his jaw. Hao moved forward as his adversary lurched backwards, whining softly. Apparently this one wasn't used to being beat up by someone smaller than him, and like most bullies, folded when faced with a fierce opponent.

Hao moved quickly and grabbed the boy's head in one hand and put his other around his throat. His foe flailed, trying to break his grip, but Hao was already very strong for his age. Without much effort he twisted. With a sickening crack he broke the other's neck.

He dropped the slack body and stared down into the empty eyes. Hands grabbed him from behind and a wire noose slipped around his neck. He fought as best he could but the Cats that held him were stronger than him and he was tired out from the short fight and his ride in the transport.

His captors brought him back under the arena to a small, damp, dark cell. He was thrown in and left there. A small bowl of murky, dirty water and a crust of mouldy bread was the only food they had given him.

Hao could hear the howls, moans and growls of the other occupants of this dreary labyrinth of cages. He could smell the fear, anger and aggression more clearly now, along with the scent of unwashed bodies. A lump rose in his throat as he thought of his old home.

Just as quickly he forced the sorrow down. He could not afford to seem weak. He was a pit fighter now; he had to be hard, pitiless, for however much longer he would live.

Wolf: Well, what do you think?


	2. Chapter 2

Wolf: I own nothing, on with it!

Sixteen year old Yoh Asakura sat in one of the estate's many orchid trees, just lazing about. He was supposed to be having lessons in the house, but he hated them. They were all about how great and smart Cats were, and how stupid and lowly Dogs were.

Yoh's black eyes blinked open as he heard the sound of someone grumbling their way towards him. A pale-skinned boy, about his age, with blue hair, blue eyes and silver husky tail and ears walked under his tree with a pair of gardening shears in one hand.

"Horohoro!" Yoh hissed. The boy jumped and looked around frantically before spotting Yoh in the tree. He stood up straight and put his hands on his hips.

"You nearly scared me right out of my skin!" The Dog boy cried, before remembering himself. "Er, I mean, Young Master."

"Relax Horohoro." Yoh said easily. "Even if the Angels of Justice's little listening drones were anywhere around, they can't hear us." He produced a small, slim, black rectangular device from his pocket.

"A scrambler?" Horohoro asked dubiously. "How'd you get your hands on one of those?"

"Snatched it out of Amidamaru's room when he wasn't looking." Yoh answered with a smug grin. Horohoro shook his head.

"You're crazy." He stated wryly. Suddenly his ears perked up and he got busy snipping dead branches off the tree that Yoh was still sitting in. An instant later Yoh heard what had set Horohoro in motion; someone was calling his name.

Calmly he crouched in the tree as Amidamaru emerged, still calling his name.

"I'm right here Amidamaru." Yoh called back, stowing the scrambler in his pocket. He jumped down out of the tree as Amidamaru strode up, ears up in indignation.

"Young Master, you realize you are supposed to be in your lessons?" The bodyguard asked.

"They're boring." Yoh whined. "Is that why you're out here, to bring me back, because I won't go." Amidamaru chuckled at his young charge's stubbornness.

"No, your mother has asked for you right away." Yoh's ears perked up, he hardly ever got to see his mother.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Yoh bounded off, Amidamaru following him, when he saw that Amidamaru was lagging Yoh slowed down to walk beside him.

"Did you hear the rebels attacked a military outpost again?" Yoh asked. There was a small, not talked about rebellion going on for a little while now. The news feeds didn't talk about it, but the opinion blogs, the ones that managed to stay out of the eye of the government's trackers, talked about it all the time.

Yoh had been watching Amidamaru for some time, and had noticed that he would often slip away to who-knows-where from time to time. Yoh had a sneaking suspicion that Amidamaru was part of the rebellion.

Yoh wasn't going to report him, no. Yoh wanted to join, but was unsure how to approach Amidamaru, just in case he was wrong. He knew that some day he would have to work up the courage, but for now he would watch, and wait.

Amidamaru showed Yoh into the drawing room, where both his mother and his grandfather waited. Yoh bowed respectfully to them both.

"Yoh, your grandfather has arranged an outing for us with a respectable young man from high up in the government." Yoh's grin faded. It was another set-up. Grandfather was forever trying to marry Mother off, and Yoh would have to go along.

"Where are we going?" Yoh tried to put some enthusiasm into his voice.

"The Pits." Yohmei replied. Yoh went cold inside. The Pits were the one thing he hated the most. People pitted against each other, or animals, and forced to fight to the death.

"No, I won't go!" Yoh cried. Yohmei moved then and slapped Yoh hard across the face.

"You will do as you're told. This may be our opportunity to redeem ourselves." Yoh never understood why his family was in disgrace in their community, but it meant that he had no friends in the other Cats. His grandfather shook a finger in his face, closing the matter entirely.

%&%&%&%

Hao had survived eight years in the Pits, the longest anyone had ever done so. He had fought with his bare hands and with weapons, sometimes his opponent had the only weapon, sometimes the opponent was an animal of some kind. It didn't matter, everyone fell before Hao's relentless, unmerciful fighting.

Years in the Pits had turned his body into solid muscle and sinew, and a stark diet had left him thin as can be. Scars criss-crossed his entire body except his face and head. Those were the only places that the doctors would use their special, high-tech quick-heal remedies, to keep crowd favourites recognisable. Everywhere else was allowed to heal the old-fashioned way.

He was dressed only in a pair of dirty, torn trousers. Bathing was rare and his whole body was covered in dust and old blood. He knew that he must reek to high heaven, but he had long grown accustomed to the smell.

The guards came in to get him, keeping their taser sticks out, just in case he tried anything. He was tied, gagged and led to the cage where he would be unleashed into the arena from. Hao knew that if he ever got free of his bonds he would kill those guards in a heartbeat. Hatred for all Cats ran deep within him, for sentencing him to this miserable existence.

He paced the cage, the roar of the crowd outside inciting him further. Lips curled back from teeth and a low rumbling growl escaped his throat. The doors opened and he creeped out of the cage into the arena.

The air was hot and tinged with the metallic-sweet scent of blood. All around him was the deafening roar of the crowds. The sandy floor of the arena had not been cleaned of last match's gore and it squelched wetly beneath his bare feet.

His opponent watched him warily. Hao did not know him, he was not one of the Pits' fighters. A criminal then, a traitor marked by the brand upon his bare chest. It was a Dog with dark eyes, dark hair and a scruffy goatee. He was heavily built, likely a tradesman. The guards had given him a trident as a weapon; little good it would do him though.

Hao stalked towards him, eyes wary. He knew not to underestimate his opponent, so he watched the Dog, waiting for him to make the first move. His adversary was still however, watching him expressionlessly.

Hao lunged at him, testing the waters. His opponent swung the trident sideways, almost as though he were more used to a sword. Hao danced out of reach and then lunged at his foe's back, striking him hard. The Dog recovered more quickly than he anticipated though and swung the trident again, cracking down on Hao's outstretched arm.

Hao backed away, fighting back a scream of pain. His challenger had broken the wrist. Anger swelled within him, but he didn't allow it to swamp him. He channelled the anger, letting it lend him strength. He darted in and grabbed the trident in a one-handed grip.

His opponent dug in his heels, refusing to let go, but Hao was smart. He pushed the trident so that it surged back towards the Dog, and then yanked it back quickly. His enemy lost his grip and Hao took control of the trident, jabbing in quickly to gore his assailant in the chest.

The Dog let out a bubbly, breathless gasp; Hao had pierced his lung. Hao pulled the trident out and kicked him down. He then stood over the Dog and stabbed him directly in the heart. His adversary gave one last choked gasp and died.

Hao stood to face the roaring crowd and froze. There, in the front row, was a young Cat. This Cat was standing like the others but he was not cheering, but staring at him in confusion and horror. But that was not what shocked Hao, it was the fact that this Cat had his face. They looked identical!

Rough hands grabbed him and he roared in pain as the broken ends of bones ground against each other in his arm. He reared back and bit the Cat that held him. There was a slight sting in his neck and Hao drifted away, the image of the other boy's face following him into the dark.

%&%&%&%

Yoh was silent the entire way back to the estate. His mind was reeling and he was trying to make sense of the fact that there was a Dog who shared his face. His mind skipped to the boy's eyes and he shivered despite the heat.

The eyes were predatory, angry. They were eyes that held no mercy and no pity. Yoh had seen the way he had stabbed his opponent; that was a Dog to be feared. But Yoh had also seen deeper, past the anger, the hate. He had seen desperation and depression in those dark eyes too.

"Who was he?" Yoh demanded of his mother when they were alone in the house.

"What do you mean?" But Keiko was trembling, giving away that she did know what Yoh was talking about.

"I'm talking about the boy we saw fighting today, who was he?" Yoh asked insistently. "What are you hiding from me?"

Keiko collapsed onto the couch, tears coming to her eyes. "I suppose you're old enough to know."

"Know what?" Keiko gave him a miserable look.

"That boy was your twin brother." She told him. Yoh felt as though he'd been kicked in the gut. All the breath went out of him and he felt faint.

"What?"

"Your father was one of the slaves on the estate." Keiko explained. "I fell in love with him, but in time he got me pregnant. Father threatened to have the babies killed if I didn't confess who'd done it."

"And what happened?" Keiko's tears spilled down her cheeks.

"They shot him, right in front of me. My Mikihisa, they shot him like he was some kind of animal." Keiko sobbed. "Then, when your brother was born he was immediately taken away from me. I never knew where he'd gone." Yoh gave his mother a bleak look.

"We do now."

Wolf: Review plz!


	3. Chapter 3

Wolf: I own nothing, on with it!

"We have to do something." Yoh paced the floor.

"There is nothing we can do; your brother is lost to us." Keiko whispered with her shoulders slumped in defeat.

"We could buy him." Yoh suggested.

"You know as well as I that Pit fighters cannot be bought." Keiko replied. "They're too dangerous."

"Then, you're just going to give up?" Yoh asked in disbelief. Keiko said nothing. "I can't just do nothing!"

"Yoh please, if your grandfather finds out that you're up to something...I don't want to lose another son." Yoh saw then that fear of her father, and fear for the one son that she had left had crushed Keiko's spirit. He nodded at her vaguely and then walked up to his room, knowing that he would need to find a way to help his brother on his own.

%&%&%&%

Yoh crouched on the roof late that night. He was waiting. He was certain Amidamaru was part of the resistance, and planned to follow him to find out for sure, and hopefully, join it. He knew the only way to help his brother was to join the rebellion. He even had the perfect opportunity for them to strike.

Yoh stiffened and ducked lower into the shadows. Amidamaru silently moved across the fields to the forest bordering the Asakura estate. Yoh waited until the bodyguard had disappeared into the trees before slipping off the roof and racing across the field after him.

When Yoh slipped into the forest he couldn't see Amidamaru. However, he could smell him. Yoh used Amidamaru's scent to track him, that way he didn't need to be too close and risk being seen. The dark forest seemed bright as day to him thanks to his natural night-vision, which made his eyes glow slightly in the dark.

Yoh was so intent on staying silent and pursuing Amidamaru's scent that he forgot to keep his ears open for anythin else that might be in the forest. That's why he didn't notice that he too was being followed, until hard hands clamped over his arms.

Before he could cry out a rag was forced into his mouth, his arms were shackled behind his back and a sack dropped over his head. He then felt his ankles being shackled and then he was thrown over someone's back. He struggled futilely as he was carried further into the forest.

"Sir, we found this one following you." The person carrying Yoh stopped and put him down on the ground. The sack was taken off his head and Yoh blinked up into Amidamaru's surprised face.

"Yoh?" Amidamaru ripped the gag off Yoh's face. "What are you doing here?"

"I want to join the rebellion." Yoh said. The young girl Cat that was standing nearby hissed at him.

"He knows?" She had soft blonde hair and brown eyes. Her ears and tail were that of a long-haired yellow tabby. "We should kill him right now." She held out a knife.

"Peace, Anna." Amidamaru plucked the knife from her hand. "He means no harm to us, I think."

"Then why is he here?" This came from the large Dog that had carried Yoh. He was native from the looks of him and had black hair and eyes. His tail and ears were that of a black coyote. "This is not a game boy, people get hurt in this." Yoh looked to Amidamaru.

"Did you know who my father was?" Amidamaru folded back his ears in sorrow and closed his eyes.

"Yes, he was a dear friend of mine, and Silva's." Silva, the big Dog, nodded in agreement.

"So, you know about my brother?" Amidamaru reacted in surprise.

"Yes, I did, but how did you find out?"

"He was fighting in the Pits today." Stunned silence met his blunt words. "We have to get him out of there." Yoh's voice was quiet, filled with grief.

"Is that why you want to join?" Anna hissed. "To rescue one Dog?"

"No, that's not the whole reason." Yoh argued. "I've never liked the way Dogs are treated; my best friend is a Dog, for crying out loud!"

"Then why didn't you come sooner?" Silva asked. Yoh's tail flicked uncertainly.

"I didn't know where to look, and I wasn't completely sure if Amidamaru was a part of it, and I didn't want to ask him outright." He explained. "I wanted to be surer of my suspicions before I confronted him, but seeing my brother, I felt that it was time to take the plunge, so I followed him tonight to find out for sure." Silva nodded in approval of his plan.

"Well, I think he's serious enough." He said, looking into Yoh's determined face. "Shall we take him to our local base?" Anna grumbled a little as Amidamaru unshackled Yoh's wrists and ankles. Yoh smiled at her, but she turned her back on him. The four of them then traipsed further into the forest, the terrain growing rockier as they went.

They stopped in front of a huge, seemingly impregnable, wall of thorny brambles. But, with expertise, the rebels slipped inside. Amidamaru held him close, making sure to point out where the hidden path was carefully. They came out into a small, rocky clearing that housed a narrow crack in the earth.

One by one they slipped into this crack. Yoh was surprised to find a long tunnel underneath the ground. It was mildly cramped and Yoh let out a sigh of relief when they came out into a larger cave. At one end of the cave there was a steel door set into the wall.

"This used to be an old army base, back in the war between the Cats and Dogs." Silva explained. "It was abandoned and we found it a few years back." Amidamaru placed his palm on an indent by the door and it slid open with an airy whoosh.

Half a dozen Cats and Dogs looked up as they entered, then away, intent on their work.

"This is just a small outpost base." Amidamaru explained. "The main base is under the mountains. There's another tunnel that leads there. This outpost is kept intact so that I could keep an eye on you, as I promised your father all those years ago, but also fulfil my duties as Commander-in-Chief."

"You're the leader of the rebellion?" Yoh gasped, his eyes wide. Amidamaru chuckled and nodded. One of the Dogs manning a computer came forward.

"Sir, I'm afraid we've had no word yet on Mosuke." Amidamaru sighed and rubbed his temples.

"Who's Mosuke?" Yoh asked curiously.

"My best friend. He was captured in a raid on government supplies, and we weren't able to recover him." A niggling suspicion tapped at Yoh's brain.

"Was he muscular? With dark, wild hair and a goatee?" Yoh asked.

"Yes. How did you know?" Yoh looked down.

"I think he was the one fighting today." Amidamaru closed his eyes tightly.

"He's dead then?" Amidamaru's bleak tone told Yoh he knew the answer, but Yoh nodded anyways. Amidamaru seemed to deflate a little and just stood there, not saying anything. After a couple minutes he seemed to regain his composure he led Yoh into a small office attached to the main room.

"Now, down to business," Amidamaru sat down and gestured for Yoh to do the same. Yoh sat in a chair, crossing his legs Indian-style. "You know that we can't just go in there and rescue only your brother."

"I know that." Yoh replied. "I have a plan." Amidamaru raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "You know that the Archangel is going to the Pit fights in two months time." Amidamaru shifted. The Archangel was the leader of the Angels of Justice.

"Our intelligence said one month."

"I checked earlier today. They had to move the date because my brother has a broken wrist and they need it to heal." Yoh explained. "The Archangel wants to see him. He's the best."

"And you want us to attack that day?" Yoh's plan was dawning on Amidamaru. "A declaration of war basically."

"Precisely, then they can't say you don't exist." Yoh replied. "Like they have been saying on all the newsfeeds."

"We have been wondering exactly how we were going to take ourselves out of the shadows." Amidamaru murmured. He then chuckled. "I always knew there was a brain in that head of yours." He turned serious again. "It will get more dangerous after that. The government will work hard to take us down, and we will be working just as hard to take them down." Yoh nodded.

"I understand that. And nothing would make me happier than if the Canids were freed." He replied honestly. "Like I've said many times, it's not fair."

"So, we show up when the Archangel is there, release all the fighters, and blow the whole place to kingdom come." Amidamaru summarized. "This is going to require me updating my status as leader to full-time."

"You mean you're going to stop being a bodyguard at the estate?"

"Yes, and if you want to be a part of this, you have to come too." Amidamaru stressed. "Do you really think you can leave your family behind?" Yoh was quiet for a moment.

"It's going to be hard to leave my mother, but this has to be done." Amidamaru sighed.

"Do you want to say goodbye?"

%&%&%&%

Keiko was awoken by a soft shake on her shoulder. She blinked her eyes open and stared in confusion at Yoh.

"Sweetie, what are you doing?"

"I'm leaving, Kaa-san." Yoh said quietly. Keiko sat up swiftly.

"Leaving? Why? Where?"

"Someone has to do something." Yoh said. "Someone has to take a stand."

"No, Yoh, you can't." Keiko reached out to touch Yoh's face.

"I have to." Yoh cupped his mother's face in his hands. "I'll be back someday, with my brother." With that he backed up and out of the window, leaving his family behind.

%&%&%&%

"One thing is bothering me." Yoh stated as the rebels walked down the tunnel to the main base of operations. They had caved in the outpost behind them, so that no one could follow.

"What's that?" Amidamaru asked in amusement.

"How come I'm a Cat, but my twin is a Dog?"

"You're fraternal twins, non-identical. It's just blind luck that you look practically the same." Amidamaru replied. They came to another door in the tunnel. "Here we are. The tunnel will be caved in once we're all through."

Amidamaru placed his hand on the indent in the wall, and typed into the little keyboard that popped up. The door shuttered open. Yoh stepped inside and gasped. He was inside what he guessed was central control. There were scores of computers, and holoscreens showing various parts of the world and detailed plans and blueprints.

"There's sleeping quarters, kitchens, practice rooms and even a greenhouse where we grow our food here." Amidamaru explained. "The base also opens into a hidden little valley in these mountains where we raise livestock."

"This is amazing." Yoh then yawned tiredly. Amidamaru chuckled.

"I'll have one of the boys take you to your new room." He said. "Get some sleep. Tomorrow we'll start training and plans. We have two months, that doesn't give us much time."

Wolf: Review plz!


	4. Chapter 4

Wolf: I own nothing, on with it!

Hao paced his tiny dank cell impatiently. He knew he was going to fight today for the first time since his wrist had been broken and he was feeling edgy. Why, he did not know, but there seemed to be something in the hot, stifling air underneath the arena that was making him stir-crazy.

As it had for the last two months, Hao's mind returned to the Cat with his face. Who was that boy? Hao's memories of his life before the Pits were dim, but he was sure he'd never known this Cat that looked identical to him, and it bothered him.

Someone was sobbing softly somewhere, and the sound grated on Hao's nerves. Crying wasn't going to help, so why do it? The sobber was likely one of the little ones that, like him, had been brought to the Pits simply to fight, not because they were criminals.

Hao had killed many young ones like that. He told himself that it was better, that death would be kinder than the life that they would live in the Pits. But, he remembered each and every one of their frightened, confused faces, and they seemed to accuse him when he closed his eyes.

_How much longer?_

The question plagued his nightmares and every waking moment. How much longer could he take? He was a Pit fighter, merciless, but inside, he was dying slowly, suffocating in the blood of so many innocents that he had killed.

The only thing that kept him fighting was the thought of vengeance. It eased the pain for a little while, thinking of the day when he could repay the Cats for all they had done. He knew it was nearly impossible, that no one ever escaped, but it was that dream that kept him from submitting to his opponent, from stopping fighting and just dying.

The door opening snapped him out of his dark thoughts. He didn't fight the guards that bound him, even though their rough handling made his still not-quite healed wrist twinge. There was no point to it, they had stunners and guns and could bring him down in an instant.

There was a heavy, spiked mace on the floor of the waiting cage. Hao picked it up, hefting its weight and using his time in the cage to figure out the best way to wield it. The crowd outside seemed more riled up than usual, but Hao figured it was because the head honcho, the so-called Archangel was there watching.

The door to the arena opened and Hao, cautious as always, slid out slowly, eyes everywhere. He saw that a cage-like apparatus had been dropped over the arena, further shielding the audience from the fighters. It was like being enclosed in a ball, with the audience outside watching what was going on. Hao didn't understand why the cage was there, until he looked at the other end of the arena.

There was an animal of some kind, chained to the floor, fighting against its restraints. It was about six feet tall at the shoulder, the long, slender neck adding about three feet to that. Its body was lean, thin, about ten feet long, and ended with a whippy five foot long tail.

The creature was scaled, bright red and had a paler, armoured underbelly. Its four paws ended in curved claws. Large, red, bat-like wings opened and closed as the creature fought. The face was lizard-like, with a mouth full of pointed, deadly fangs, short horns and maddened yellow eyes.

_Dragon._ The name came unbidden from the depths of Hao's mind. A dragon was supposed to be myth however, fairy tales told to children. But, that's certainly what this creature looked like.

Suddenly the chain on the dragon was released. With a shriek of rage the beast charged at the only thing that it could vent its rage on, Hao. Hao braced himself, planting his feet and raising the mace, thinking that today might be his dying day after all.

But as the creature charged an explosion rang out and the whole arena began to fill with smoke. Hao could hear the frightened and bewildered cries of the audience but he could see nothing. Then someone grabbed him by the wrist.

"Run." Hao could only obey as the person holding him took off, heading down into the bowels of the arena. As they ran Hao could see out of the corner of his eye dark-clad figures opening cells and setting fighters free. His own, well, rescuer, was wearing the same black garb with a black helmet that encircled their entire head, obscuring their face. As they ran his rescuer scattered small disc-like devices on the floor that had a blinking red light on them.

"What are-"

"Bombs." His rescuer was male then. "We've gotta keep moving." With that the two of them continued to race through the underground of the arena, racing to freedom. When they were out in the open air Hao had only a second to breathe in the first breath of truly fresh air that he had in years when it felt like something had grabbed him from behind and thrust him forward at a ridiculously high speed.

Lights danced in front of his eyes, blotting out the landscape and swirling in patterns he could not begin to understand. The sensations faded and Hao had a moment to breathe and feel his rescuer stoop before the same thing repeated itself again, and again, four more times in total.

When they finally stopped, Hao leaned over and retched miserably, feeling like his stomach had been tied up in knots and then spun around in circles until the knots came out. When he looked up his rescuer was holding out an open water bottle to him.

Hao took it and drank eagerly. The water was cold, clean and sweet. It was the most amazing thing he'd tasted in eight years. Within seconds he had drained the entire bottle, feeling more refreshed than he'd ever felt before.

"Geez, you must have been really thirsty." Hao looked over to his rescuer and froze in shock. He had taken off his helmet and Hao realized it was his Cat doppelganger.

"I remember you." Hao's voice was a low growl, wary but intrigued. The boy's ears flicked forwards, as though trying to take in his voice better. "Who are you?"

"My name is Yoh." The boy replied. His voice was lighter than Hao's, but it seemed to have some of the same tone as his. "What's your name?" Hao looked at Yoh warily, but the Cat boy only looked curious, dark eyes staring into his as though trying to figure him out.

"Hao." Hao finally answered.

"Hao." Yoh repeated, the name like a soft prayer on his lips. "I'm sorry about the teleport, it takes awhile to get used to it."

"Why so many different ones?"

"Teleport tech only receives signals for about a kilometre, so we had to do five to get five kilometres out." Yoh pointed behind Hao. Hao turned around and saw a massive orange fireball dominating the horizon to the south. He knew that it was the Pits. He turned back to Yoh.

"Why did you come for me?" Yoh fiddled with one black ear, forehead creased as he tried to find the best way to explain.

"It was partly to strike a blow at the government, but...for me it was personal." He finally said.

"Personal?"

"Hao...I'm your twin brother."Hao felt like the world had dropped out from beneath him and he lurched back a step. He stared at Yoh, taking in his features.

Yoh did the same, noticing small differences between the two of them now. Hao's hair was a shade or two darker than his own and his eyes weren't as wide, giving him a more serious appearance. The two of them were the same height and both skinny, but Hao was gaunt, ribs showing through skin. The scars adorning Hao's body seemed much worse up close and Yoh had a hard time not crying out in grief for his brother.

"How?" Hao finally croaked out. Yoh looked towards the burning Pits once and then back to him.

"We should walk and talk. The teleport makes it difficult to track us, but we should still be cautious."

Hao understood the logic of this and he followed Yoh into the bramble forests that dominated the foothills of the mountains. Yoh explained the whole story to him as they slipped through the prickles further into the rocky terrain of the foothills. Yoh explained about their parents and the rebellion.

"So what do you expect from me?" Hao asked when Yoh ran out of words. "That I'll be your slave now?" Yoh jerked around so fast that Hao backed up a step and slid into a crouch, ready if Yoh was going to hurt him. But the expression on Yoh's face was so odd, so unfamiliar that he paused.

"Gods no!" Yoh cried. "What would give you that idea?"

"You're a Cat." Hao replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Yoh shook his head.

"Not all Cats are like that." Hao gave him a sceptical look. "You'll see." Yoh sighed, and then hopped up out of the crevasse they had been travelling through. "We're almost there."

Hao looked up, but he could see nothing but an unending landscape of rock. Where this base was supposed to be he had no idea. Yoh moved forward purposely however and walked right up to a tall, seemingly impenetrable wall. He placed his palm on an indent in the rock wall, and all the sudden a section of the wall just slid open.

Yoh motioned for Hao to go in. He stepped inside while Yoh scanned the area, making one last precaution in case they were in fact followed. The air was cool inside and the walls were not stone, but reinforced steel. He could hear voices at the end of the long hall he was in and moved towards them, curiosity overriding caution.

"Hey." Someone put their hand on Hao's shoulder from behind. Instinct took over and Hao grabbed whoever it was, spun them around and pinned them to the wall, a chokehold on their neck. Hao didn't let go when he saw that it was Yoh.

Yoh let out a gurgling noise and pawed at Hao's hand around his throat. Hao's grip only tightened, a sense of satisfaction going through him as he saw the fear in Yoh's eyes. Yoh's struggles grew weaker and weaker, and his eyes began to shut, slowly losing consciousness.

Unexpectedly though he was ripped away from Yoh and forced to the ground. He felt a momentary surge of triumph as Yoh fell to the ground limply. He then screamed and struggled as unseen hands tried to bind him. In the next moment a sickly-sweet smelling cloth was clamped over his face and the world went abruptly dark.

%&%&%&%

The first thing Hao realized when he came to was that he was in chains. He was kneeling on a hard floor with his arms shackled above his head. The second thing he realized was that he had an awful, pounding headache.

The door of his cell creaked open and Hao winced and turned away as the light from outside hit his eyes, sending a splinter of pain shooting through his head. A tall Cat walked in and shut the door behind him. The Cat was well-built, with white hair and was a snow leopard apparently. Hao thought that he looked like a warrior.

"Hello Hao, I'm Amidamaru and I'm the commander of this base."

"Cats are always in charge, do you think you impress me?" Hao snapped.

"Got a sharp tongue on you, don't you?" Hao didn't answer that, just glared at Amidamaru. "You know the others want me to get rid of you?"

"Why?" Hao demanded.

"You tried to kill your brother for no reason."

"He was going to attack me!" Hao cried, and staring into those feverish, slightly mad eyes, Amidamaru saw that he believed it.

"Hao, a touch on the shoulder is not an attack." Amidamaru's voice was softer now, gentle, as though talking to a skittish animal. Hao said nothing, but his chest heaved with barely controlled anger. "We've already had to euthanize some of the other Pit fighters because of violent behaviour."

"So why haven't you done the same with me?" Hao asked tiredly, putting his head down.

"Because Yoh begged me not to." Hao lifted his head, staring at Amidamaru in shock.

"He's alive?" He whispered hoarsely. Amidamaru nodded.

"And more worried about you than himself." An unfamiliar, warm feeling rose in Hao, he didn't understand what it was, but it made him feel good. "I think what we have with you is a deterioration of basic social skills." Hao raised an eyebrow, looking unimpressed. "You've had no contact with people whatsoever these past eight years except when fighting. Obviously you've learned that if people touch you, they will hurt you."

Hao understood what Amidamaru was saying. He didn't like it though. "So what you're saying is that I'm nothing but an animal that acts on instinct." He snarled. Amidamaru huffed softly.

"Temper, temper. I never said that. It's a psychological problem with you, one that can be remedied with a little help."

"Help?"

"Yoh is going to try to help you regain those social skills that you lost." Hao felt a growl coming on.

"You mean, like teach me?" He did not want to learn anything from a Cat!

"Yes, otherwise we will have to euthanize you." Amidamaru replied calmly. Hao settled into a sullen silence. "Here's the deal, you are not allowed to go anywhere on this base, except your room, if Yoh isn't with you, understand?"

"Why should I?" Hao asked, sounding even to his own ears like a petulant child.

"I told you why." Amidamaru sighed. "No one will let you wander around without constant supervision and Yoh's the only one who will actually do it, and not try to kill you in the process."

"Why won't he?" Hao was honestly confused. He had tried to kill Yoh, and yet the Cat didn't want retribution? Cats killed Dogs that hurt them; that was the way the world worked. But Amidamaru's next words intensified that funny, warm feeling in Hao's chest.

"Because you're his brother, and he cares about you."

Wolf: Review plz!


	5. Chapter 5

Wolf: I own nothing, on with it!

Amidamaru unshackled Hao and helped him stand up. He put one hand on the young Dog' shoulder and led him through the base. Hao accepted this without a fight, in face he barely seemed to realize he was being touched.

Hundreds of questions ran through his confused mind, but the question he always wound up back at was why did Yoh care about him? The warm, comforting feeling had not gone away and it was making Hao's mind feel fogged up.

"Here we are." Hao was startled to realize they had managed to walk all the way to Yoh's room. Amidamaru opened the door and stepped inside with Hao.

Yoh was making his bed when they walked in. He bowed respectfully to Amidamaru. Amidamaru took him aside and spoke softly to him while Hao surveyed his new room. The walls were fairly bare, but pristine. There were two twin-sized beds with matching blue sheets. A few clothes were scattered on the floor and a couple of books laid haphazardly on the desk next to a portable holoscreen with a newsfeed up and running on it.

**REBELS BLOW UP PITS** the news article read. Hao contemplated that this meant the ulterior purpose had been achieved; the rebels were known.

"Alright, I'll leave you to it." Amidamaru got up and headed for the door. He gave Hao a hard stare. "Behave." He warned, and then disappeared. Hao huffed softly at his retreating figure and then turned to Yoh.

Yoh was smiling at him. Hao had seen fighters smile; cruel smiles mean ones and crazed ones too. But the smile that Yoh was smiling was as unfamiliar to him as land is to a fish. He could make no sense of the emotions behind that smile, but it made that warm feeling inside him start all over him.

A small part of him wanted to relax in that smile. But the fighter screamed not to let his guard down for one second and so he didn't. He merely showed Yoh a blank expression, not revealing anything. This did not seem to faze Yoh.

"I think we should get you out of those pants and into the showers." Yoh commented. Hao's nose crinkled in confusion, he'd had his bucket of cold water over the head only weeks ago, he didn't need any sort of cleaning. "I don't know what they did in the Pits, but around here we have shower every two to three days." Yoh explained patiently.

He rummaged through the dresser drawers beside his bed, coming up with some clothes. He flicked an ear at Hao and then left the room. Hao followed; irritated that he was subject to the whims of another Cat.

Yoh led him to a room that had a number of stalls with toilets, something he hadn't seen since before the Pits, and shower stalls with curtains for privacy. Yoh gestured to one of them. Hao only stared at him, puzzled. Yoh blinked and then smacked his forehead.

"You don't know how to take a shower, do you?" Hao shook his head, getting more exasperated by the minute. Yoh rubbed his forehead and sighed softly. "Well, first of all you've got to take off your clothes." His tail twitched as Hao stripped down and flung away his tattered pants, looking to Yoh for what to do next with a vacant stare.

"...ok, um, now you need to get in the shower, and I'll show you how those work." Yoh moved to one of the stalls and Hao stuck by his side. On the wall under the showerhead was a small panel with an up and down button and also a green start button and a red stop button.

"Alright, so the up and down buttons allow you to adjust temperature of the water." Yoh demonstrated and the display screen read COLD LUKEWARM WARM in succession. "And then you press the green button to start." Yoh backed out and motioned for Hao to push the button. Hao did and jumped as a steady stream of warm water hit his head and cascaded down his body.

He shook his head and blinked; the warm water felt wonderful on his skin and he moved so that he was standing more fully under the spray.

"Good, that's good." Yoh encouraged. "Now you'll want to actually wash, so take a cloth and put some of the soap that's in the shelf on the side wall and clean your entire body so that there's no more dirt on it."

No more dirt? Hao thought the concept sounded appealing and grabbed the aforementioned items and scrubbed his whole body until it was pink and dirt-free. Yoh then instructed him through shampoo and conditioner, two totally foreign concepts to Hao.

Yoh handed him a towel when he emerged from the shower and told him to dry himself off. "Where are my pants?" Hao asked gruffly, enjoying the feeling of finally being clean.

"I threw them out." Yoh replied with a twitch of his nose. "They were disgusting." He handed Hao instead a pair of brown pants, a white t-shirt and a black jacket along with socks and boots. Hao put them on and raised an eyebrow at Yoh, who smiled. "Excellent! Now, your hair."

"What about my hair?"

"It needs to be brushed, get the tangles out of it." Yoh led Hao over to a mirror. Hao gasped at the face that looked back at him. The eyes were bloodshot and rimmed with shadows, and the hair was snarled and matted, making him look like a wild animal.

Yoh handed him a brush and told him just how to go about getting the knots out. "There," He said when Hao was done and his hair hung straight and sleek. "Now, maybe we should cut it."

"No," Hao intervened. "I like it like this." And he did. The straight, waist-long dark hair made him look almost elegant, something Hao had never considered himself. Yoh cocked his head, eyeing Hao critically and then nodded in agreement.

Hao then realized that Yoh had not touched him once through his shower, dressing or hair brushing. He found that odd, considering Yoh was supposed to be helping him get used to touch. "You haven't touched me at all. What's the matter, you afraid of me?" Hao taunted. His confusion only deepened when Yoh shook his head.

"I'm not going to say I'm not afraid, because you do make me nervous, but..." He paused for a second. "I want you to get used to my presence first, having someone nearby before we move on to touch. This is going to be slow, and we're both going to have to be patient with each other."

Yoh moved closer to Hao, making sure to maintain eye contact. Hao's muscles tensed and his ears flattened against his skull, warning Yoh not to get any closer. Yoh halted, still looking into Hao's eyes.

"Hao, I'm going to touch you now, alright?" Yoh kept his hands where Hao could see and moved one hand to press against Hao's chest. Hao went completely rigid and a low rumbling growl emanated from deep within his chest.

Yoh kept his hand there, not breaking the eye contact with Hao. "I'm not hurting you, see?" He murmured. "Nothing to fear." After a few minutes Yoh dropped his hand.

"What was the point of that touch?" Hao demanded.

"Touch doesn't always have a point." Yoh replied. "Touch is often used to convey feeling, or a sense of connection to the person one is touching."

Hao didn't understand what Yoh was saying. He felt no sort of connections to Yoh, nor did he feel anything but trepidation when Yoh touched him. Yoh sighed again, seeming to realize that what he was saying wasn't getting through to Hao.

"Come on, I'll give you a tour of the base." Yoh flicked his tail in a gesture for Hao to follow.

"Once again, the Cat lords over the Dog." Hao muttered darkly. "I fail to see how this rebellion changes anything."

"Ours is a special case, one created out of necessity." Yoh replied mildly, not at all put out by Hao's tone. "Everyone does their fair share of work here, be they Dogs or Cats." Yoh wandered into a room where Dogs and Cats comingled at tables while they ate. "This is the cafeteria, as you can see, this is where we eat."

Yoh waved hello to the cooks behind the counter, pointing out the kitchen to Hao. Hao could hear assorted mutters as they passed.

"Should have destroyed him like the others..."

"He killed Mosuke..."

"...dangerous."

Hao glared at the speakers and then followed Yoh out of the cafeteria. Yoh showed him the training facilities, rooms with mats and exercise equipment. There was also a shooting range and the main operations room, filled with computers and holoscreens.

"We also have supply rooms filled with weapons, food and other things that we've stolen from the government. Also greenhouses where we grow a lot of our own food."

Yoh then led him to a door that had a coded lock to get out. He punched in a password and the door slid open with a breathy sigh. Hao gasped audibly at the sight that met his eyes. Green, that's what hit him first, was the shear amount of green outside.

Then the smell hit, a smell of growing things and clean, fresh air. Yoh smiled as he watched his brother inhale the sweet air. "Beautiful, isn't it?" Hao opened his eyes and looked at his brother, face revealing nothing. "This is a hidden valley, high up in the mountains." Yoh explained, moving across the field of long grass. "The mountains are treacherous with all the fog that constantly surrounds them, so aircraft can't get through them. It's an ideal hiding place for us."

Hao only half paid attention, taking in everything he could see. The mountains rose high on all sides of the valley. There were fruit trees and small plots of crops like wheat dotting the landscape. Pens of livestock centered around a large barn in the corner of the valley. It was this barn that Yoh was headed to.

"People have been saying that we managed to bring back something incredible from our raid on the Pits, I want to see what it is." Yoh explained as he flung open the door to the barn and stepped inside.

The air inside was musty, but sweet. A few animals lowed benignly. Suddenly there was a strange chirruping sound, the likes of which neither twin had ever heard before. Hao glanced around and then jumped back, a snarl escaping his lips.

Yoh followed his gaze and gasped in surprise. The dragon from the Pits poked its head out of the top of one of the stalls and chirruped again, yellow eyes regarding them curiously.

"Magnificent, isn't she?" A soft, whispery voice asked from the shadows. A tall, pale Dog with blonde hair, pale blue eyes and grey greyhound ears and tail emerged, wiping his hands on a cloth.

"She? How can you tell?" Yoh asked.

"Strangely enough her genitals are more mammal-like than reptilian, so it was fairly easy to make the distinction."

"Oh, Hao, this is Faust, our doctor and veterinarian. Faust this is my brother. Hey, where's Eliza?"

"She is in the hospital ward inside." Faust replied. "I will join her in a moment."

"Why is this thing here?" Hao demanded. "It tried to kill me, it's a monster."

"How many have been saying the same of you?" Faust mused idly, reaching up to scratch the dragon under her chin, generating a soft hum from the dragon. Hao didn't answer. "This poor girl had been given a heavy dose of mind-altering drugs. Once she came down she was as docile as a kitten, leading me to wonder if she was already domesticated."

"Who would domesticate a dragon?" Yoh asked.

"Perhaps the Avians?" Faust suggested. "It would be beneficial to a flying species to have flying pets, would it not?"

The dragon suddenly lowered her head and butted Hao gently in the side. Hao growled at her, but the dragon emitted a soft whistle-click and rubbed her snout against Hao's chest. Yoh giggled childishly.

"I think she likes you."

Wolf: Review plz!


	6. Chapter 6

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh and Hao wandered away from the barn, despite a low, mournful hoot from the dragon as they left. Hao enjoyed being out in the open air after years cooped up in a dank, dark little cell. Yoh seemed to realize this and simply walked a track around the entire valley, instead of going inside.

"It's great out here, isn't it?" Yoh finally said quietly. Hao didn't answer, sniffing the air. He was still surprised he could smell anything over the scent of soap that covered his skin, but he supposed he would get used to that. "It's really cool at night, you can see so many stars."

A memory, long forgotten, rose in Hao's mind. Goldva had watched the stars with him, pointing out the constellations and telling him the stories behind them. Hao stared up at the sky, trying to imagine the stars as he remembered, but failing. Yoh saw the look of stark longing on his face.

"We can come back tonight when it's dark and star-gaze. Would you like that?" Hao nodded vaguely, still squinting up at the sun. Suddenly Yoh smacked his forehead.

"Oh, I forgot!" Hao turned to him, raising an eyebrow. "We should get you a check-up."

"Check-up?" Yoh nodded.

"Yeah, it's to make sure you've got nothing wrong with you, physically at least." Hao gave him another confused look; why would he have something wrong with him?

"It's not just injuries, they want to make sure there's nothing wrong with your insides, like your heart, you know?" Hao didn't, but he followed Yoh reluctantly back into the base anyways. When they went back inside Hao gazed back at the door, wanting nothing more than to be back in that wonderfully open air.

The medical bay was white and clean. That was the only way Hao could think to describe it as, clean, but he supposed it had to be. A female Cat, looking to be in about her twenties, with long blonde hair, lavender eyes and soft silvery Siamese features, came out of a back room at Yoh's call.

"Hao, this is Eliza, Faust's wife." Hao stared, flabbergasted beyond belief. A Cat and a Dog, married? In his mind it wasn't possible. Eliza gave him a kind smile.

"I will need you to undress and get into a hospital gown." Her voice was as whispery as her husband's. She re-entered the back room while Hao changed, not enjoying the way the gown's material barely seemed there, making him feel naked.

"Excellent." Eliza had a tray of instruments and several syringes. Hao's ears folded back at the sight of them. In his experience syringes meant that he was going to be drugged, so he disliked them.

"What are those for?" Yoh asked, voicing Hao's concern.

"They are vaccines, I am assuming that he has never been vaccinated for any of the regular diseases." Eliza explained. Yoh nodded.

"Hao, those needles have a kind of medicine in them that will prevent you from getting certain diseases and sicknesses, ok?" Hao just rumbled softly in his chest. "I had to have them too, I don't like them, but their good for you." Hao gave his brother a look, but sighed and tried to relax. "The other thing is Hao she's going to have to touch you in order to give you your check-up. Are you going to be ok with that?"

"I'm going to have to be, aren't I?" Hao responded grumpily. Yoh grinned weakly and nodded. Eliza checked his ears, his eyes, his spine and his blood pressure. She also checked his lungs and his heart, and Hao had no idea that you were supposed to do that sort of thing to make sure nothing was wrong with them.

When she was done with her inspection Eliza nodded in approval. "Well, he's as healthy as can be, except for a bad case of malnutrition and dry skin, but those will sort themselves out on their own." She then held up the first of Hao's vaccines.

Hao's entire body tensed up when he saw the needle. Unexpectedly, before Eliza administered it, a soft, warm hand slipped into his. He jumped and glared at Yoh.

"I know, I'm sorry." Yoh soothed. "But I'm here, everything's going to be ok." The words seemed ridiculous to Hao, but at the same time he was oddly comforted by them and by the feel of Yoh's hand in his.

Yoh rubbed his thumb against the dry, rough skin of Hao's hand as Eliza administered the shots. He could feel all the little scars on Hao's hand beneath his own skin. He squeezed slightly and Hao let out a faint gasp, but relaxed when he realized Yoh was just trying to comfort him.

"See, was that so bad?" Yoh asked as they walked out of the medical bay. Hao had gravitated from walking behind Yoh to walking beside him. It was an unconscious move, one that signalled that he was at least starting to get used to Yoh's presence. "Alright, it's about lunchtime, so let's head to the cafeteria."

They passed other people on the way to the cafeteria, most said a friendly hello to Yoh, and gave Hao a wide berth and a wary stare. Hao was once again astounded at the number of Dogs that were mixed in with the Cats on the base.

When they got to the cafeteria the one serving the food was a big Dog with dark eyes, black lab parts and black hair done up in a ridiculous-looking pompadour.

"Hiya Yoh!" He said as they came up to him with trays.

"Hey, Ryu. What's on the menu today?" Ryu grinned.

"Just my famous pork chops and mashed potatoes." Yoh licked his lips and grinned, holding up his plate.

"Better make it a big serving then." Yoh grabbed Hao's plate as well and Ryu gave them both a generous helping of food. Hao watched the other diners as warily as they did him as the twins made their way over to an empty table.

Hao poked dubiously at his potatoes with the fork he had been given. "It's good." Yoh told him, taking another large bite of his own. Hao shovelled a tiny bite onto his fork and tasted it. It was good; warm and fresh, with flavours that he had no names for.

Yoh looked up and smiled as Silva came to sit at their table. "So, causing a stir, I see." He noticed Hao regarding him carefully and smiled benignly. "I'm Silva, and you must be Hao." Hao nodded and took another small bite of meat. Silva turned his attention back to Yoh.

"Are you still coming to check on the southern settlements with me tomorrow?" He asked the young Cat. Yoh paused with a forkful of potatoes halfway to his mouth.

"I don't know. If I did Hao would have to come with me, and I'm not sure Amidamaru will let him off the base just yet."

"I can check with him." Yoh nodded and turned to Hao.

"Hao?" Hao looked up quizzically. "We have a number of settlements in the southern jungles." He explained. "I was supposed to go with Silva tomorrow to check up on them, does that sound like something you'd want to come along for?"

Hao was startled once again. Yoh was asking him what he wanted? The question through him for a loop and he wasn't sure how to respond, but looking into Yoh's earnest eyes he knew he had to find an answer soon.

"I guess…" He said slowly. Yoh's face lit up in a radiant smile.

"Excellent! Now we just have to check and make sure it's ok…Oh, hi Anna." Hao swivelled his head to find the aforementioned Cat girl standing behind him. She glared down at him hostilely.

"So, is this the killer?" Her voice was snide, condescending.

"Anna, that's not nice." Yoh chided. "It's not like he chose to be put in the Pits."

"Whatever." Anna returned her icy glare to Hao. "If you come near me, I swear I will flay you alive." Her warning delivered, she stormed off, tail lashing angrily.

"Huh, as if she could." Hao snorted.

"Don't be so sure." Silva warned. "She's very good with a blade."

"What's her deal, I've never hurt her or anything." Hao narrowed his eyes at the door from which Anna had exited the cafeteria.

"Her story is somewhat sad." Silva sighed. "She's a mixed breed, but her mother was the Dog. Now most of the time if a Cat is born to a Dog woman they will automatically take the babe away and place it the household, getting rid of the mother, but Anna's mother anticipated this and managed to sneak Anna away to an old medicine woman Cat in the forests. A few years ago the family that Anna's father came from found her and tried to take her away from Kino, so the two of them came here for protection. She's learned not to trust anyone but herself from Kino, very well, so don't take her comments personally."

"I didn't know." Yoh looked stricken. "That's sad."

"Yes, well, that's how it goes in our world." Silva sighed. Yoh then noticed that Hao had only eaten about half the food in front of him.

"Hey, why aren't you eating?" Yoh asked worriedly. "Are you feeling alright?" Hao gave Yoh another one of his blank stares.

"He's been underfed for a long time Yoh." Silva explained gently. "He's not used to so much food at once." Yoh's puzzled frown melted away.

"Oh, so as he eats more he'll be able to stomach more food at once." Silva nodded. Yoh sighed. "That's a relief." Not long after that the twins said goodbye, well, Yoh said goodbye anyways, and they headed out again.

%&%&%&%

"Hao. Hao!" Hao was awoken by his brother's urgent voice and his hand shaking his shoulder. He shot up in the bed, a luxury he had not had since he was a child, and backed away as far as he could, ears flat and a low growl emitting from his throat.

"I'm sorry." Yoh was visibly shaken and Hao relaxed a little seeing him in such a state. "You were groaning, in your sleep I mean. Are you alright?" It occurred to Hao that Yoh had asked that question an awful lot in the last day or so and it only added to the confusion he felt towards the Cat.

"I'm fine, just a nightmare."

"About the Pits?" Hao nodded slightly. Yoh sat down next to him on the bed, staring at him with those earnest, worried black eyes. "Want to talk about it?" Hao jerked slightly and gave him a bemused look.

"You're a strange Cat."

"How so?"

"You care about a Dog."

"That's not all that uncommon really." Yoh shrugged. "A lot of Cats don't like the way Dogs are treated."

"Then why don't they do something?" Hao demanded. "Instead of watching us kill each other."

"They're scared." Yoh whispered.

"What the hell do they have to be scared about?" Hao asked angrily.

"The government." Yoh replied. "You think they treat suspected traitors kindly? Anyone they suspect can, and will, be taken in to be tortured for information and then killed, regardless of innocence." Hao stared at his hands, he hadn't known that. "No one is safe from them, not even the Inner Circle of Angels."

"So they figure it's better to stay quiet." Yoh nodded miserably. "Like our mother?" Yoh nodded again, this time tears springing to his eyes. Seeing them made Hao's stomach feel funny, like it was being twisted out of shape, but he had no idea what to do, so he did nothing.

"Things are always more complicated than they seem." Yoh finally said hoarsely. "Remember that, ok?"

Wolf: Review plz!


	7. Chapter 7

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Yoh? Yoh, wake up, it's time to wake up." There were large hands gently rubbing Yoh's back, familiar hands, and a familiar voice calling his name, coaxing him out of sleep.

"Five more minutes." He muttered, turning onto his side. A deep chuckle met his words and he was carefully flipped over onto his back and tickled. He giggled and opened his eyes to find Silva leaning over him, an amused expression on his face.

"Are you two coming, or what?" Silva asked. Yoh popped up in the bed and nodded vigorously. "Alright, be ready and at the transport in fifteen minutes."

"Yes, sir!" Yoh threw a salute and scrambled off his bed. He turned to find Hao sitting up in his own bed, favouring Yoh with his customary neutral expression. "Come on Hao, get dressed. We're going out to the settlements today, remember?"

Hao did remember, what he didn't understand was the command to get dressed, wasn't he already dressed? He watched Yoh pull off the t-shirt and sweatpants he had been wearing in bed and pull out a fresh pair of black pants and a brown shirt. He paused, and looked at Hao, then rummaged around again and through a set of clothes in Hao's lap.

"You wear clean clothes every day," Yoh explained. "Or as often as you can get them, which around here isn't too difficult."

"So what, you just throw out the used clothes?" Hao asked, pulling his clean pants up and buckling the belt.

"No, we wash them in the laundry and then wear them again when they're clean." Yoh replied. Hao understood this, the logic in that statement made sense to him, and he nodded curtly at his brother. Yoh handed him a black jacket while pulling on one of his own and headed out the door, distractedly finger-combing his hair as he walked. Hao imitated him, finding that keeping his appearance neat made him feel a small sense of pleasure.

Yoh led him through the winding, steel-lined tunnels of the base. It was slightly eerie; there was hardly anyone else awake at this early hour, and Hao felt as though there was certain wrongness in the emptiness.

Silva was waiting for them in a tunnel that Hao did not remember seeing the other day. It stretched in either direction, seemingly forever, into the dark. The air inside was cool and dusty. There was some sort of track laid down on the floor of the tunnel, and a strange, wheeled contraption that looked mostly like a box with a motor in it.

"What is it?" Hao asked, giving it a dubious look.

"Not exactly sure what it's called." Silva replied mildly. "It's from the old days when most transportation was along the ground, not in hovercraft. It runs on the tracks, you see? It's old, but it's a reliable way of getting to the outposts and the southern settlements without walking."

Yoh jumped in the box, finding cushioned seats and a lever inside. "Is that to start it?" He asked. Silva nodded, smiling.

"We don't need steering because it just runs on the tracks." He explained. He beckoned to Hao, who gingerly stepped inside and sat on one of the seats. Silva pulled the lever, and the transport came alive with a lurch, and the light on its front flickered on with a yellowish glow.

It chugged down the tracks, picking up speed gradually. It was by no means the smoothest of rides; the little cart rattled along, shaking its inhabitants. A low rumble accompanied the rattle of the cart, but after awhile the three riders barely noticed it.

In fact, after about fifteen minutes Yoh yawned and curled up into a ball on one of the seats, tail tucked around him, and went to sleep. Hao, however, stayed awake. He watched the gloom ahead warily, briefly his mind thought of stories of monsters in the dark, and then he brushed them aside impatiently.

Silva was awake as well. He was seemingly relaxed, but Hao noticed that he kept one hand over the gun in his belt and his eyes watched the tunnel as alertly as his own. Silva noticed him watching him and smiled slightly.

"I was almost sent to the Pits." He told the young Dog in a low voice, so as not to wake Yoh. Hao's ears perked forward in interest. "My old master was a kind old Cat that treated the few slaves he kept with respect and dignity. I often thought that he kept the slaves he did to save them from crueller fates. Indeed he was the one that bought me before the Pit owners could." Silva laughed slightly. "That was when I couldn't have been much older than you. I had been of one of the few tribes of free Dogs left, ones that lived on the western plains, and kept out of sight." He sighed softly then, sadly.

"What happened?" Hao asked, the sound of his own voice startling him. Silva gave him a sorrowful look.

"The Cats came, they killed some, and then took the rest of us." He replied softly. That was all he would say in the matter, and the two Dogs fell into awkward silence.

"How...how did you come here?" Hao finally asked. Silva didn't reply for a moment, seemingly lost in his thoughts.

"My old master knew that he was dying, and so he himself took me to this place, and told me to fight, fight for the freedom of all the peoples of this world." Silva murmured. "It wasn't long after that he died."

Hao's mind churned, another Cat that was willing to help Dogs. The impossible in his head was slowing becoming a possible thing to him, but Hao fought it, not willing to give up his way of thinking. It was a fluke, that was all, something wrong with those Cats that liked Dogs. But still the doubts plagued him.

%&%&%&%

Silva stopped the transport as it came to a dead end, hours later. He gently shook Yoh awake as Hao waited impatiently beside the cart. Yoh bounced out and trotted after Silva as he marched to a keypad in the wall.

After typing in a code a section of the rock wall disappeared into the floor with a mighty rumble. Hao gasped as the air from outside hit him like a moist, hot blanket. He immediately began to pant, trying to cool down in the humid heat that they emerged into.

The world they came out of the tunnel into was far different from anything Hao had ever seen. Dense, moss and lichen covered trees stretched out in all directions. Ferns and other tropical plants all but obscured the dark soil. Bird calls and strange animal howls rent the air, a general clamour that was unending.

"Welcome to the jungle." Silva said. He led the way into the underbrush, revealing a plain dirt track that wound its way through the tall trees. Hao and Yoh flanked Silva, not willing to get left behind. Both the twins pulled off their jackets within minutes of arriving in the forest; it was too hot.

Suddenly Hao jumped and growled, huddling closer to Yoh in a half-crouch. Dark shapes had materialized out of the forest, watching the three travellers with grave eyes. They were Cats, all of them leopards, with skin as brown as the earth they walked upon. They were a mix of men and women, ranging from teenage to elderly and all carried spears and wore bright war paint upon their faces and barely clad bodies.

The leader of them spoke to Silva in a strange tongue that seemed to flow like water. Silva answered back, holding a lengthy conversation. Some of the younger ones approached Hao, curious about his scars. Hao drew back, snarling when one tried to touch.

The leader said something sharp, and the young ones drew away, casting wary glances at the battle-scarred Dog in their midst. Silva nodded to the leader and then turned to Hao and Yoh.

"We must stop in their village, their elder has herbs that Faust needs for his medicines." Silva explained. "It will not take long."

"What, you don't have that Heal-All stuff?" Hao asked bad-temperedly. "You know the stuff that can heal anything in minutes? Would have thought you'd have stolen some."

"We have, but not so much as we can afford to use it on every little ailment or injury." Silva replied as the tribe of Leopards led the way through the jungle. "It is only used in the most dire of situations." The idea made sense to Hao, why waste a resource if it's not needed.

The Leopards led them into a small village that consisted of nothing but houses in the trees cleverly hidden in the branches and giant leaves. The only reason any of them realized that it was a village was that most of the Leopards were on the ground, regarding them curiously.

An elderly female Leopard, dubbed in bright blue paint and wearing a headdress of colourful feathers, hobbled up to Silva, greeting him in that strange tongue. Yoh and Hao then noticed the tiny girl clinging to the old medicine woman's skirt. She looked about five or six years old, with a large afro of dark hair, big dark eyes and bright yellow and black spotted ears and tail.

She spotted the two of them and her eyes went wide. She hesitantly stepped forwards, staring into their faces. She sang something in that foreign language. Silva and the medicine woman paused, staring at the twins.

"What's she saying?" Yoh asked, uncomfortably aware that almost the entire tribe was staring at them quietly now.

"Her name is Opacho, she is an oracle, and the medicine woman's apprentice. She says that you two have a great destiny." Opacho said something else. "She says that apart you two are lost, but together you are whole, and will do great things."

Hao felt goosebumps prickle up all over his body. The little oracle's eyes seemed to stare right through him and he shivered slightly. He looked over at Yoh and saw that he looked just as disturbed he felt.

"What does that mean?" Hao asked. Silva shook his head and shrugged.

"The Sight is finicky, and speaks in riddles for those that hear it." He said. "The meanings will become clear in time." He thanked the medicine woman for her herbs and the three of them headed back into the jungle.

Sometime later they came upon a wall of logs. The wall encircled the first of the settlements they were visiting today. A guard at the top of the wall yelled when they came into view, and the gates slid open with a groan.

Silva strode inside, Hao and Yoh on his heels. While the majority of people inside the walls were Dogs, Hao could see some Cats mingling with the crowd. Suddenly a young Dog, dark skinned with a huge afro and tail and ears of a chocolate lab rushed up to them.

"Hey, Yoh!" He cried. "What do you call a deaf Archangel?"

"I don't know Chocolove, what?"

"Anything you want, he can't hear you!" Chocolove erupted into hysterical laughter. Yoh laughed along with him, though less enthusiastically. Hao stared at them with a mystified expression on his face; the joke really wasn't that funny.

"Oh, Chocolove this is my brother, Hao." Chocolove peered round-eyed at Hao.

"Well, I know Yoh told me you were a Pit fighter, but gods above, those scars are horrible!" Chocolove cried. Hao growled softly; he knew that his scars were ugly, he didn't need it pointed out. "Uh, no offense meant." Chocolove chuckled nervously, realizing that Hao could be dangerous.

"Making friends?" Silva strode into their midst with another Coyote. This one had a craggy, hard face like stone. His dark hair was wavy, but he and Silva were clearly of the same tribe. "It has been a pleasure seeing you again my old friend, but we must be going." The strange Coyote smiled briefly and then walked away.

"Who was that?" Hao asked as they headed out into the jungle once again. Yoh watched him closely, he was certainly asking more questions now, and he hoped it meant that he was starting to relax in his new environment.

"That was Kalim, he is one my tribe." Silva explained. "On one of our raids we stopped a large transport, multiple cars, multiple goods to steal. In one of them was a bunch of slaves that were being transported to the Pits. Among them was Kalim." He laughed. "We were so surprised to see each other."

"How come he's out here and not fighting?" Hao demanded.

"He wishes for only peace now, he doesn't want to fight." Silva shrugged. "It is his choice and I respect it." He chuckled again. "I'm just glad I was able to rescue one of my own, I never in a million years would have thought I would have found him." Yoh laughed with him.

"It's a small world."

Wolf: Review plz!


	8. Chapter 8

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Will you stop following me?" Yoh looked up at the sound of his brother's aggravated voice. They were outside in the valley, someplace Yoh had made a point to visit often in the last few weeks, for Hao's sake.

He now raised his eyebrow at the bizarre scene being played out in front of him. Hao was walking quickly across the valley, around the tree where Yoh was reading, the dragon following him like a toddler, chirping plaintively all the while.

Finally completely at a loss Hao plunked himself under the tree where Yoh was sitting in and sighed. The dragon scuttled over and curled herself next to Hao, emitting a happy hum. Hao groaned and put his face in his hands.

"You know, I read somewhere that some animals when domesticated imprint on one person as their master." Hao glared up at Yoh. Yoh shrugged and fell out of the tree, landing with a grace that Hao envied. "I'm just saying, she's probably got it in her head that you're her master."

"Either that or she wants to eat me." Hao grumbled. Yoh laughed and patted his shoulder. Hao stiffened, but made no other move. He had somewhat gotten used to Yoh's touches, but still did not like being touched for long periods of time, and the onetime Yoh had attempted a hug Hao had nearly bitten him.

Yoh sat down next to Hao, leg almost touching his, but not quite. Yoh was always careful about this and it seemed to help Hao relax a little. Hao inhaled; this close he could nearly taste Yoh's unique scent, a blend of oranges and cherry blossoms. A fitting scent for a boy as gentle as Yoh was.

"You should name her." Yoh suggested. Hao gave him a look like he was insane. "I'm serious!" Yoh persisted, patting the dragon on her head. "Every creature should have a name, and she's decided you're her caretaker, so you should name her."

Hao hated to admit it, but what Yoh was saying seemed reasonable to him. Hadn't Goldva been his caretaker and given him his own name? Hao sighed and leaned back on the tree, gazing at the dragon critically.

Her colour reminded him of spring, when flowers of all colours burst into bloom. Hao's favourite had always been red flowers. She also was a creature of the sky, a rider of the winds. The name came to him in a flash of enlightenment.

Kochi." He said simply. Yoh's ears perked and he cocked his head.

"Kochi? Spring wind." He mused. "I like it. Hi, Kochi." The newly named Kochi cocked her head as though understanding that this was important. She queeped at them softly, and then nuzzled Hao gently.

"Enough of that." Hao snapped, but there was little bite behind his words. Yoh smiled, though Hao would never acknowledge it consciously, he seemed to have an attachment to Kochi.

Hao raised an eyebrow at Yoh when he got up and walked all the way around Kochi, running his hands along her scales. "What are you doing?" He asked.

"You know, I'll bet that you could ride her." Yoh reasoned.

"Why would you want to?" Hao wanted to know. Yoh shrugged.

"Well, for one thing, you could fly through the mountains without worrying about hitting something, she knows them well." It was true, Kochi liked to go on flights through the mountains, and she never came back any worse for the wear. "Also, I think it might just be fun."

"Fun?" Yoh nodded at Hao and then carefully settled himself down in the space between Kochi's neck and shoulders.

"Chur?" Kochi looked back at Yoh curiously.

"It's ok, Kochi." Yoh soothed, patting her neck. "See, she doesn't seem to mind me here. Now, if I could just get her to...WHOA!" Yoh yelped as Kochi pumped her mighty wings and lifted off the ground, Yoh still clinging to her.

Hao yelled in surprise and stood up abruptly, heart pounding in his chest. A moment later he heard Yoh's laughter as Kochi dipped and turned in the air, a mere ten metres from the ground. It was almost as though she was playing.

The play lasted only a few minutes before Kochi coasted down to the ground. Yoh fell off her back laughing, his hair in a disarray. Kochi whistled inquiringly at Hao and crouched low to the ground, spreading her wings and stretching her neck out. Hao patted her head lightly.

"I think that's enough flying for today."

%&%&%&%

Hao watched his brother move about their room with a glare of irritation that bordered on anger. "I know you don't like it Hao, but I have to go." Yoh said apologetically.

"Leaving me to fester in this little room." Hao snapped angrily. Yoh's ears drooped pathetically under Hao's withering stare.

"I am sorry, but you know as well as I that I cannot disobey orders." Yoh replied. Hao merely huffed and flopped on his bed, turning his back to Yoh. He heard Yoh sigh and a moment later his twin leaned down to hug him awkwardly.

Hao tolerated the embrace, but did not return it. He had grown to accept the touches that Yoh bestowed on him with increasing frequency over the last two months with no complaint, but never did he ever touch Yoh in return willingly.

"I'll see you later, ok?" Yoh said. When he got no answer he quietly left the room, leaving Hao by himself.

Hao felt justified in his anger. Whenever Yoh had to leave for a raid, or someplace else Hao wasn't allowed yet he would be shut up in his room, with a guard outside to keep him from leaving. That meant that he couldn't go outside.

He had been looking forward to trying the makeshift saddle that had been designed for Kochi in a test flight. He had discovered flying as a great joy in his new life. Now, he couldn't even do that. So, yes, he wound get mad at Yoh.

But...Yoh was as subject as anyone else to the commands of Amidamaru, and to disobey was to invite a charge of insubordination, and any punishment that went along with it. So, was it really fair of Hao to get so cross with his brother?

Hao curled up in his bed, thoughts running through his head. Hours had passed with him simply sulking. It was night-time already; that was when a lot of the raids took place. A strange feeling settled in his stomach, making him feel like it was at once filled with butterflies, and weighed down with rocks. Yoh would have told him that it was anxiety, but Hao had no words to understand how he felt and so he simply lay in bed. Eventually, he drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

%&%&%&%

Hao's eyes opened slowly. He looked over at the other bed. Yoh wasn't there. Hao sat up and looked at the clock. Ten o'clock in the morning. Yoh should have been back by now. That butterfly-rock feeling settled in Hao's stomach again.

He quietly went to the door and stepped out. Immediately he was grabbed by the guard by the door.

"You're not supposed to be-"

"Did the raiding party come back?" Hao interrupted. The guard blinked, startled for a moment and then scowled.

"I don't have to tell the likes of you-"

"SOLDIER!" The guard snapped a quick salute as Amidamaru stalked towards them. "I think he has every right to know about what goes on around here, don't you?" The guard gulped at his commander's tone and bobbed his head furiously. Amidamaru turned to Hao.

"The raiding party is back." He said softly.

"Then where's Yoh?" Hao demanded.

"He didn't return." Hao felt his body go numb at Amidamaru's words.

"What do you mean?"

"The raid was a bust, they knew they were coming. Our guys had to get out of there, so they split up to make themselves more difficult to track, but Yoh never made the rendezvous." Hao backed away, shaking his head dumbly.

He hardly noticed when the door was shut behind him. A strange, terrible emptiness welled up inside him. A sudden scream burst out of him and he smashed his fists against the steel walls, bruising his hands.

He wasn't aware of this, however, as he continued to smash at the walls that confined him, locked up in a pain that he could not escape, and could not fully understand.

%&%&%&%

Three days passed and there was no word of Yoh. Hao barely ate or slept during this time, waiting for some sign, some news as his heart felt as though it was slowly being crushed with each passing moment. He barely understood this feeling; he couldn't actually care for Yoh, the Cat, could he? It went against everything he had taught himself, and yet, he could not deny the way Yoh made him feel safe and wanted.

Loud noise outside his room roused him from his painful thoughts. He stepped up to the door, pressing one ear against it, straining to hear more. The voices he heard sounded stressed, but Hao could not hear what was really going on.

All the sudden a loud, pain-filled cry reached his ears and Hao stiffened. He knew that voice, knew it anywhere. It was Yoh! And he was hurt! Hao could hear the voices moving off, and knew he had to act.

In a quick, smooth motion he pushed the door open and ran out into the hall. The guard let out a bark of surprise and grabbed for him, but Hao was nimble and dodged around him, streaking down the hall. His feet carried him in the direction of the medical bay.

He barged in just as Amidamaru set his brother down on the examining/operating table. Hands grabbed Hao, and he yelled and began to fight, desperate to reach his brother.

"Stop, let him go." Amidamaru ordered. Hao was released and he slowly made his way over to Yoh. Yoh's body was laid on his side and Hao could see dried blood on his side and hip. Yoh's ears and tail hung low and his skin was a sick greyish colour.

The lips were dried and cracked and his eyes were shut. Yoh's breath came in quick, barely audible gasps and his head moved from side to side slowly, feverishly. A low moan of pain escaped Yoh's lips, making Hao's heart squeeze even harder.

Slowly his hand reached out and grasped one of Yoh's limp ones. Yoh's eyes opened as Hao's thumb caressed the soft, cold skin. His lips parted but no sound escaped them as Yoh stared up at his brother in dazed awe. For the first time ever, Hao was touching Yoh.

Hao watched as Faust and Eliza cut away Yoh's clothes from his blood-caked side, revealing bullet holes in his hip and side. The holes were enflamed and oozing with pus. Hao's nose wrinkled at the faint smel of rot already setting in.

He looked back down into his brother's pain-filled eyes. "It's going to be okay." He soothed softly. "Everything's going to be ok." Yoh flinched slightly as Faust inserted a needle in his skin. A small sigh escaped his lips as he let the sedative do its work, eyelids fluttering shut.

Hao sat by Yoh's side, unmoving, holding his unconscious brother's hand as the doctors worked to save him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~%~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~&~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wolf: Review plz!


	9. Chapter 9

Wolf: Owns nothing.

The doctors had to extract three bullets from Yoh's side and hip. They also had to clean the wounds of the infection that had festered there. All the while Hao hovered over his brother, anxiously awaiting the doctors' pronouncement.

When the wounds were clean Faust had declared them nonthreatening. This meant that no Heal-All would be used on Yoh, meaning that he would have to heal on his own. Part of Hao realized with dark triumph this meant Yoh wouldn't be able to leave the base for some time, but a larger part of him cried out in anguish at the knowledge that Yoh would have to remain in pain, with only painkillers to dull it.

Amidamaru allowed Hao to remain in the infirmary, so long as he did not try to leave. But Hao had no inclination to abandon his very sick brother, rather he tireless stayed by his side, waiting for Yoh to regain his health.

Yoh was laid on his side, to prevent unnecessary pain to the wounds in his body. An IV drip provided him with painkillers and nutrients straight to his bloodstream. Several times a day Faust, or Eliza, would change the bandages, rubbing an herbal salve in them to aide their healing.

Yoh slept mostly in a feverish stupor plagued by nightmares and delirium demons that made him thrash and cry out in an eerie wail. Hao did his best to soothe his agitated brother, with only some success. When Yoh was quiet Hao cooled his hot, sweaty face with wet cloths.

Those that visited the ward noticed a change in the ex-Pit fighter. Where Hao used to abhor touch and refuse to touch anyone else, he could now be seen most often stroking Yoh's cheek or his sweaty hair, murmuring softly to his unconscious brother.

Hao was hardly eating or sleeping in the wake of his brother's injuries, and Faust noted he was beginning to look once more like the underfed, sleepless waif they had rescued instead of the healthy young man he had become. His eyes too had changed, become softer, more open. The anger was still evident, but it had been dulled, tamed.

On the fourth day of Yoh's fevered coma Hao found himself dozing lightly in the uncomfortable chair by his brother's bed. He had barely left Yoh's side and barely slept, wanting to be able to see Yoh open his eyes.

Suddenly Hao's ears perked and he lifted his head, opening his eyes. He had detected a change in Yoh's breathing. Instead of the soft, quick, fevered gasps of the last few days Yoh's respiration had settled into an easier pattern, one more like that of someone in true sleep; deep, long and peaceful.

In another moment a long, hoarse yet peaceful sigh escaped Yoh's lips, one like that of a man coming out of sleep. His ears flicked and his hands clenched and unclenched. He attempted to turn over onto his back, but Yoh's hand upon his side, carefully placed above his wounds, prevented him from moving.

This at last seemed to rouse the injured boy completely. Yoh's eyelids fluttered open and hazy dark eyes stared up at Hao, struggling to focus on him. Those eyes widened when he realized who it was standing above him, becoming clear and much more aware. Yoh's lips parted, but all that came from them was a hoarse, dry croak. Again he tried, with the same result.

"Shh, enough, I'll be right back." Hao told him, sensing Yoh's frustration. He went over to the sink and filled a glass with cool water. He walked back over to his brother, who had not taken his eyes off him the entire time and gently cupped his chin, helping him drink the refreshing liquid.

"Hao...A-aniki." Yoh's first words to his brother were soft, affectionate. Hao felt his eyes unexpectedly fill with tears as he stared down into Yoh's dark, love-filled eyes. He gently stroked Yoh's cheek, rousing a soft murmur of mingled amazement and contentment.

"That's right, I'm here." Hao's voice was husky and soft, filled with emotion that he had not expressed since he was a child. Yoh leaned into the touch, still not breaking his eye contact with his brother.

"You look awful." He said with concern in his voice. Hao laughed slightly, even in his weak and injured state, Yoh was still trying to look out for him.

"You don't look so good yourself." He reminded.

"Have you been sleeping?" Yoh asked, trying to reach up with one weak hand to touch Hao's haggard face. Hao caught his hand and entwined their fingers, further surprising and delighting his brother.

"Not as much as I should." Hao admitted softly.

"You should."

"I'm not leaving you." Yoh opened his mouth but then saw the stubborn set of Hao's jaw and sighed.

"Come here." He said, stretching out his arms to Hao. Hao blinked and took a nervous step back. He searched Yoh's imploring eyes and slowly relaxed. Carefully he climbed into the bed beside Yoh, mindful not to dislodge the IV in his arm, or touch any of his wounds.

Yoh grasped Hao's shirt with frail fingers, nuzzling against Hao's chest. Hao sighed softly in contentment and wrapped his arms tenderly around his younger twin, resting his chin atop Yoh's head. He soon felt Yoh's body relax into sleep in his arms. Hao lightly stroked Yoh's hair and swiftly followed him into a serene slumber.

%&%&%&%

The sound of voices somewhere above him penetrated Hao sleep. Drowsily he opened his eyes and lifted his head slightly, heedful of his brother still sleeping beside him. Amidamaru looked down, a charmed smile upon his face.

"I take it he woke up?" He asked in a low voice, not willing to disturb Yoh's tranquil sleep. Hao nodded briefly. "Ah, that is good." Amidamaru regarded Hao calmly. "You will stay with him?" It was worded as a question, but one that both knew the answer to.

"Of course." Hao replied, gently tightening his hold on his sleeping brother. Yoh mewed softly and then nuzzled Hao in his sleep. Amidamaru smiled at the sight of the two of them cuddled up together like a pair of puppies; true brothers at last. He reached out and rested his hand briefly on Hao's shoulder.

"Good man."

%&%&%&%

"Take it easy, Yoh." Hao cautioned as Yoh tottered to his feet. Yoh ignored him, pleased to be on his feet again. He attempted to walk, his wounded hip making him move in a slow, limping gait. Hao watched this uneasily, staying close.

Yoh's shaky balance failed him and he tipped forward, falling. Hao caught him in an easy grip. Yoh grinned up at him, panting slightly with exertion, but happy nonetheless.

"Come on Aniki, let's go outside!" Hao smiled indulgently at his joyous little brother. He understood Yoh's eagerness, ever since he first woke up he'd been restless to move around, and now that he had been released from the infirmary he had fairly exploded with excitement.

"Not today, otouto. You're still not strong enough." Hao chastised gently. Yoh's ears drooped and he pouted. "That's not going to work on me." Hao's voice was stern, but kind. "Won't it just be nice to be back in your own room?"

Yoh perked up a little and he nodded. "Tomorrow can we go outside?" He asked. Hao found some delight in finding he was in charge now, but his greatest concern was making sure Yoh healed properly.

"Perhaps." Hao replied, then handed Yoh a pair of crutches, which his brother took reluctantly.

The change in Hao had grown so much more as Yoh healed. It seemed that as Yoh's body had healed itself, Hao's heart and mind were healing too. Years of pain and anger were melting away, the mental and spiritual scars of living life only to fight and kill slowly but palpably erasing themselves in Hao's newfound understanding of love and forgiveness.

He had begun to notice things now, that Yoh would do and how he unconsciously reacted to him. Hao realized that Yoh had almost always taken the where Hao wanted to go, most often outside. He felt guilty now for all the times he'd snapped at Yoh, or hurt him in some way, but Yoh never seemed to remember, or care about those moments.

He also realized that since Yoh finding him his nightmares had decreased. They still plagued him, but less often and less horribly. He still felt immeasurable guilt for his actions in the Pits, and knew that he probably always would.

"Aniki?" Hao became aware that he was simply standing, staring off into space. Yoh looked at him questioningly. "Are you alright?" Hao tried for a smile.

"I'm fine." Yoh was unconvinced.

"Are you sure? You had a funny look on your face."

"It's nothing, really." Hao insisted.

"Ok, if you're sure..." Yoh said reluctantly, then swung his crutches, heading for the door. Hao chortled and followed after his younger twin. Yoh waited for him at the door, unable to open it and keep his crutches in his hand at the same time.

Hao opened the door and Yoh hop-walked out, Hao on his heels. All who saw them greeted Yoh warmly. Hao was favoured mostly with wary or openly hostile stares. Yoh saw them and settled closer to Hao, so that they were walking as close as they could to each other with the crutches. It was Yoh's way of saying that he was there for Hao, and Hao found he was grateful for it.

"Tomorrow we should go see Kochi, she must be lonely." Hao nodded in agreement and flipped on their bedroom light. Yoh flopped on his bed, sighing happily as he inhaled the scent of his sheets. He then popped up and looked at Hao.

"What do you want to do now?" Hao shrugged at the question.

"I don't know, whatever we can in this room." Yoh pondered the problem for a moment.

"We could read." He suggested. Hao's ears lowered slowly and he looked away, slightly embarrassed. Yoh cocked his head in confusion before realization dawned on him.

"You can't read, can you?" He asked hesitantly. Hao nodded glumly.

"Ok, I'll teach you." Yoh said, startling Hao.

"Teach me?" He asked. Yoh nodded eagerly.

"Yeah, it's not so hard, you'll see." Yoh looked at the books on the desk and frowned. "Hmm, I'll have to ask if we have any books that will help you learn, all of these are a little advanced."

"So, what do we do now then?" Hao asked.

"I...I could read to you." Yoh offered.

"Read to me?"

"Yeah, would you mind?" Hao shrugged. Yoh grinned happily and pulled a book off the desk. Hao sat down next to him and Yoh's quiet voice soon took him away on an epic journey.

Wolf: Review plz!


	10. Chapter 10

Wolf: I own nothing!

Hao woke up to a poke in the nose. He groaned and flipped over onto his back, trying to burrow into his blankets. The sheets were grabbed away from his form and he curled up tighter against the sudden chill of the room. He was poked again, this time in the ear.

Hao turned back over and glared up at his grinning brother. "Do you mind?" He sniped, but there was little bite to his words, and a small smile was creeping up his face.

"Come on, let's go outside." Yoh cajoled. "Don't you want to see Kochi?"

"As a matter of fact," Hao replied, sitting up, practically dumping his brother, who had been crouched over him, into his lap. "I do." Yoh grinned and bounced in place happily. "But," Hao held up a finger, making Yoh's ears droop in anticipated disappointment. "We're going to go have breakfast first."

Yoh's face lit back up in a delighted grin. "Ok!" He agreed readily, and limped over to get his crutches. He bounced impatiently by the door as Hao took his time getting dressed and brushing his long hair. "Come on." He whined.

Hao smiled and got up, crossing over to the door. He held it open to Yoh with a mock-bow. "After you, young Master." Yoh giggled and pushed his shoulder for the joke.

"I'll bet we can find you e-readers for learning reading somewhere." Yoh chattered as they walked, or in his case limped, over to the cafeteria. "I still have money saved away, if I could get one of our contacts in the city, or go there myself-"

"I don't think you should go off the base for a little while, Yoh." Hao interrupted. Yoh halted, staring at his brother, a mixture of indignation and confusion clear on his face. Hao never understood how Yoh was so open with his emotions. Even now Hao had difficulty allowing himself to feel, even after the events of the last little while, and most of the time his expression remained blank. The exception was when he was with his brother alone.

"Why not?" Yoh asked.

"For one thing you can barely walk." Hao replied shortly. "And for another, I don't think you can sufficiently defend yourself in order to be out on those raids."

"That's not true, Aniki!" Yoh protested.

"Then how did you get hurt?" Hao demanded angrily. Yoh's ears slowly folded back at his tone and he seemed to shrink under Hao's burning gaze.

"I was cornered by an Angel, and I tried to fight back, but couldn't." Yoh admitted quietly. "The only reason I escaped was because I still had one teleport key, the others I dropped and were fried in the explosion that destroyed the supply transport we were supposed to be raiding. It was rigged to explode. The Angel shot me as I was teleporting."

Yoh looked away, shame stamped across his face. Hao's anger died as he looked at Yoh and he sighed, realizing he was going to have to work on his temper.

"I shouldn't have snapped." Hao said, gripping Yoh's shoulders gently. To his horror Yoh's eyes were filled with miserable tears. "Oh gods, don't cry. But, you have to understand, if you can't defend yourself then you shouldn't go out there." Yoh nodded miserably. "Which is why I'm going to teach you to fight."

Yoh lifted his head slightly to look Hao in the eye. "Really?" Hao nodded, managing a small smile.

"It's the least I can do." He replied. Yoh at last smiled and reached out to hug his brother. "Alright, alright, let's get breakfast."

Yoh bobbed his head in agreement and once again set out, the bounce back in his manner. Hao shook his head at Yoh's antics as they walked along. Where once they had annoyed him he found they gave Yoh a certain charm now.

Hao sat Yoh down at one of the tables and went to go get food for the both of them. Ryu eyed him, looking nervous as Hao held up two plates to him, but gave him the food all the same. When Hao turned back to go to the table Silva had sat down with Yoh and was chatting amiably with him.

"Ah, hello Hao." Silva said in a friendly tone as Hao sat down, pushing one plate of food over to his brother. "So, Yoh tells me you're going to teach him to fight." Hao nodded, unpeeling his banana fastidiously. "I think that's a wonderful idea. You can't get any better than learning to fight from someone who's made their living from it."

"Not willingly." Hao reminded. Silva nodded in acknowledgement.

"Perhaps, but there is no denying that fighting the way you had to has probably made you the most dangerous fighter in the world." Silva continued. "We should see if we can actually set you up as a trainer, like for everyone to learn from if they choose."

"You think they'd want to learn from me?" Hao asked sceptically.

"I think they will, once they see how good you are." Silva replied. He cocked his head. "I had a look at some of your fights on the holovid." Hao flinched. "You've definitely got skill, and if you could share that skill, I think that we'd have an unbeatable fighting force."

"That's a little optimistic, isn't it?" Hao folded his arms and cocked an eyebrow at Silva. The Coyote grinned.

"Well, maybe, but hey, maybe it's not. Like I said, you're probably one of the best, if not the best, fighter in the world." Silva looked at his watch and got up. "See you two later, alright?"

"Alright." Yoh waved goodbye to Silva and then turned to Hao, showing him an empty plate. "Let's go outside!" Hao had to laugh.

"Ok, ok. You win, let's go." He said, pushing out from the table and helping his brother stand up. The two of them made the short trek to the outside door.

A sigh of contentment escaped both their lips as the warm, sweet air of the valley washed over them. Yoh blinked in the bright sunlight, but hop-skipped out onto the grass as fast as he could, Hao right behind him.

"Hey, where's Kochi?" Yoh asked, looking around. Hao brought his thumb and forefinger to his lips and whistled sharply. But, unlike all the other times, there was no answering whistle and no Kochi.

"Where is she?" Hao murmured, feeling worried.

"Maybe Faust knows." Yoh suggested, pointing with his crutch to the barn. Hao nodded and the two of them crossed the valley to the barn.

"Faust? Faust!" The skinny Dog doctor came out of one of the stalls, blinking mildly at them.

"Ah, the twins. Feeling better Yoh?" Yoh nodded eagerly. "What brings you two out here?"

"Do you know where Kochi is?" Hao asked. Faust scratched one of his ears.

"No, I haven't seen her since yesterday, which is odd, because she likes to sleep in the barn."

"She does." Hao conceded. "Well, thank you anyways." Faust nodded and wandered back into the dark recesses of the barn.

"Do you think she got hurt, or captured?" Yoh asked as they walked away from the barn.

"I doubt she got captured by the Angels again." Hao replied. "She's smart enough to know not to tangle with them. But, maybe the Avians got her."

Just then a melodious roar reached their ears. Yoh and Hao looked up to see Kochi and another, bright orange dragon flying towards them. The orange dragon trailed what looked like a metal bar attached to her neck by a metallic rope.

The two dragons landed, Kochi immediately nuzzling Hao. The orange one hung back and chirped at Kochi plaintively. Kochi went back and nuzzled the other dragon, communicating in whistles, clicks and chirps.

"I think they're sisters." Yoh said in awe as the two dragons happily cuddled with each other.

"I think you're right, Yoh." Hao responded. "And I think Kochi may have helped her escape from some lace, judging by that lead the orange one is trailing."

"Yeah." Yoh edged toward the new dragon. "I think I can get that off of her." He said, reaching for the collar that attached the dragon to the bar. The dragon let out a squeaking noise and backed off slightly. "It's ok, I'm not going to hurt you." Yoh soothed. The dragon's head lifted and she cautiously padded over to sniff him lightly.

Yoh giggled and then gasped when the dragon rubbed her muzzle against him, humming softly. "Looks like she likes you." Hao laughed. "I think you just got yourself a dragon." Yoh grinned joyously and reached out to pet his new dragon between her short horns.

"Let's get that collar off of you, huh?" He said, unsnapping the metal collar. The dragon shook her head and chirruped, pleased. Hao picked up the bar and examined it.

"Looks like Kochi pried it out of whatever it was attached to." He said, showing where the bolts at the ends of the bars had been twisted and bent out of shape. "Smart girl." He praised, scratching under Kochi's chin. "Well, are you going to name her?"

"Cho." Yoh replied happily.

"Cho? Butterfly?" Hao repeated. "Why?"

"Because she's brightly coloured and dips about like butterflies do." Yoh replied, stroking Cho's neck. "Do you like it Cho?" Cho emitted a whistle-click and nudged Yoh playfully. Yoh giggled and playfully tugged her horns.

All the sudden something struck Yoh in the side and sent him sprawling. Stunned, he stared up into Horohoro's livid face.

"You idiot!" The Husky cried, punching Yoh in the chest. "You didn't even say goodbye, I thought you were dead!" Horohoro's eyes were brimming with tears as he pummelled Yoh, who simply allowed him to vent his anger.

Suddenly Horohoro yelped as he was gripped by the collar and hauled away from Yoh to come face to face with Hao's fury. He gulped as Hao bared his teeth angrily at him.

"Aniki, let him go, please."

"He attacked you." Hao growled in response.

"He was just angry. He's my friend, and he was upset that I left without saying goodbye." Yoh explained. Hao gave Horohoro a hard stare, but let him go.

"Who is he?" Horohoro asked.

"He's my twin brother." Horohoro stared at the both of them.

"Since when?" He cried. Hao snorted.

"It's a long story." Yoh sighed.

"Man, why didn't you say goodbye?" Horohoro asked, eyes distressed.

"I couldn't. We were taking enough risks as it was saying goodbye to Kaa-san." Yoh explained apologetically. "When did you get here?"

"Oh, a bunch of us were liberated by your guys last night. We'd been in contact with them for some time, and last night we revolted." Horohoro grinned triumphantly. Yoh nodded in understanding.

"Well, it's good to see you, my friend."

"Likewise. Now, why is there a dragon staring at me?"

Wolf: Review plz!


	11. Chapter 11

Wolf: I own nothing.

"Again!" Hao roared, circling his brother. Yoh panted, body streaked with sweat. He got back to his feet and rushed at Hao, at the last moment turning to attack his side. Hao growled and batted him away easily. "Come on!" He yelled, and then gripped Yoh's arm as he lunged, throwing him off balance and pushing him to the ground.

The two brothers stared at each other, panting. Hao then held out a hand, helping Yoh back to his feet. "You're getting very good." Hao praised. Yoh looked down, ears folded back in embarrassment.

In the four months since Yoh's injury Hao had been instructing him on fighting. What he found had delighted him. Yoh was quick to learn and despite his gentle disposition was a fierce fighter. Yoh was weaker than Hao, but he was faster, and Hao taught him to use that speed to his advantage. He also taught him how to read his opponent, find his weaknesses and strengths and use them.

Others had begun to ask for training from the former Pit fighter, including Yoh's friend Horohoro, who had gotten over his early misgivings about Hao. Even the rest of the rebel base was warming up to the young man, now that they were seeing what he could contribute.

"You think I'm ready to go on another mission?" Yoh asked between gasps as he and Hao headed off the training ring to get cleaned up. Hao hesitated; he still did not like the idea of Yoh out there.

"I think you should have some more training before you go out again." He said slowly. Yoh's ears drooped slightly, but he nodded in understanding. Hao felt slightly guilty for keeping Yoh here, he knew his twin was eager to help, but Hao was afraid of losing him, the one person who believed in him through everything.

"Ok, then let's go and say hi to the girls." Yoh suggested, bounce back in his step. Hao chuckled and felt glad that Yoh was so willing to forgive and forget. The two of them took a quick shower and headed out to the valley.

The girls, Cho and Kochi, had become staples in Yoh and Hao's lives. When Yoh was still recovering from his injuries and would get antsy, Hao would take him to the valley and they would play with the girls. As time went on they began to fly on the dragons more, exploring the mountains and seeing just what they could do.

Amidamaru commented that having dragon riders would be an advantage, if they had enough dragons. That was one of the twins' missions when flying; to see if they could find more dragons. So far, they had found none. The twins had created for Cho and Kochi saddles and reins. The dragons didn't seem to mind them and were most responsive to commands in the air.

Hao trotted after Yoh, glad to see that his brother's limp had disappeared in the last little while. His hip still seemed to bother him on damp, cold days, but other than that, and the scars, there was no indication that Yoh had been wounded at all.

"We could try looking for dragons again today." Yoh said eagerly as he trotted through the tunnels, occasionally saying hello to other rebels. A lot of them also greeted Hao, having gotten over their wariness. A lot still didn't like him though, a fact that Amidamaru would take time to reverse.

"Hmm, I feel more like a leisurely ride today." Hao replied. Yoh nodded. Hao wondered at how easily they had slipped into the role of older and younger brother, with Yoh willing to follow Hao's directions for the most part.

Someone brushed up against Hao and involuntarily he bristled, lips skinning back from his teeth in an unconscious snarl. A touch on his arm drew his gaze back to Yoh.

"It's hard for you still, isn't it?" Yoh asked quietly. Hao nodded and tried to relax. Though he was used to and indeed enjoyed Yoh's touch, he still had issues with most other people touching him. Trust; that was the problem, he trusted Yoh, but it was too short a time ago when most of the people on the base would have rather seen him dead.

"I am trying." Hao said ruefully.

"I know, and you're doing a good job, considering." Yoh praised. "You're also doing a very good job with your reading." Hao shrugged, embarrassed.

"It's not so hard." He muttered, letting the valley door open. "You're doing just as good with fighting."

"That's because I have such a good teacher." Yoh then stopped just outside the door, frowning up in confusion at the sky. Hao followed his gaze and started.

"What are they?" He asked softly. Five shapes were flying towards their valley from deeper in the mountains. When they were closer he could see that they were men and women, but with great feathered wings adorning their backs.

"Avians." Yoh whispered in awe.

"What are they doing here?" Hao asked suspiciously. "I thought they didn't want to be involved with us?" Yoh and Hao watched the party of Avians draw closer, alarm growing when they saw that several carried weapons. "Yoh, go get Amidamaru." Hao ordered.

"What? What are you going to do?" Yoh demanded.

"I'm going to make sure they stay out here." Hao replied. "I don't know what they want and until I do I'm not letting them inside the base."

"But, they could hurt you." Yoh yelped fearfully. Hao turned with a smile, patting Yoh's head.

"I've survived the Pits, don't you worry about me." He quieted his brother. "Now go!" Yoh hesitated a moment and then raced to obey his brother's command. Hao watched the Avians draw closer, feet braced apart, prepared for anything. The Avians, he saw, only carried spears as their weapons.

The Avians landed with one mighty swoop of their wings, bare-chested their leader striding up to Hao. He was tall, muscular with green hair cropped around his shoulders and piercing green eyes. His great wings reminded Hao of a hawk, and were mottled grey and brown. Upon his arms were blue tattoos of intricate whorls and curves.

"Why have you come here?" Hao demanded, keeping his voice even.

"We wish to speak to Amidamaru, if it is indeed him still in charge." The leader said in a calm, measured voice.

"Why?" Hao asked shortly.

"That is confidential." The leader said.

"Then you'll have to wait out here." Hao replied. "My brother has gone to get Amidamaru, and then we'll see."

The Avian guards grumbled at his tone, but their leader silenced them with a wave of his hand. "Of course, caution is always best." He said, looking Hao over. "What is your name, young man?"

"Hao." The leader nodded, apparently pleased. At that moment Yoh came back with Amidamaru.

"Liam Diethel. This is a surprise." Amidamaru stated, placing his hands on his hips. "I was under the impression that you wanted nothing to do with us."

"Things have changed." Liam replied. He looked at the twins. "We should speak alone." Amidamaru nodded.

"Hao, Yoh, good work." Yoh and Hao moved off, knowing they were being dismissed as Amidamaru escorted the Avians inside.

%&%&%&%

"What's this about then, Liam Diethel, clan leader?" Amidamaru asked as he led the Avian into his office. Liam had told his guards to wait outside. Liam sat down in the offered chair and rubbed his temple. Amidamaru noted that his face was haggard, his eyes ringed with shadows.

"I was foolish in thinking that we were not going to be drawn into this." Liam murmured. "I am in need of your assistance." Amidamaru's ears pricked forward at this.

"Oh?" was his only reply.

"My son, my son has been taken." Liam said, voice rough with pain.

"You are sure?" Amidamaru whispered.

"Yes, he had taken his pet, Morphine, for a flight and she came back alone, with this attached to her." Liam threw a piece of paper down on the desk. Amidamaru picked it up and read

_We have your son Lyserg, if you ever wish to see him again you will all submit to the rule of the Archangel._

Amidamaru looked up from the paper and back at Liam, who was shaking with sorrow and rage. "And that is not the only thing. To make sure we knew they actually had him they sent something else...his severed arm."

Amidamaru gasped in horror, but he knew the move to be a smart one. The clan family all had the intricate tattoos on their arm, making an arm an easily identified, but gristly, verification of capture.

"And, you wish us to help you get your son back, then?" Liam nodded miserably.

"We are a peaceful people, and so do not have the weaponry to attempt a rescue on our own." Amidamaru closed his eyes, thinking. "Our kind must get involved now, but we will not go to those bullies and torturers. All our technology and resources will be at your command if you help us."

"Do you know where they've taken him?" Amidamaru asked, startling Liam.

"Yes, they are holding him at a nearby outpost." Liam replied.

"Alright, we'll have to get a team together." Amidamaru stood up, looking Liam in the eye. "We will get your son back."

%&%&%&%

Amidamaru led Liam out, assuring him that he would get in touch at the slightest of news. As they emerged Liam stared up in astonishment at the two figures wheeling through the air above on the backs of their dragons.

"Where did they come from?" Liam asked as the dragons landed and their passengers disembarked.

"Kochi, the red one, was there when we did a raid on the Pits." Liam shuddered at the name. "Cho, we believe, is her sister and Kochi freed her from wherever she came from."

"I did get a complaint from one of my people that one of their dragons had gotten loose and hadn't been seen."

"You won't take them back, will you?" Liam looked down into Yoh's earnest, worried face. Liam chuckled.

"Of course not. I would never separate a dragon from their Chosen." Liam then turned to Amidamaru and bowed. "I hope to hear news from you soon." Amidamaru bowed back and the five Avians took flight.

"What was that about?" Hao asked when they were gone.

"Liam is the Clan leader, and the Angels of Justice have taken his son." Amidamaru replied. "We're going to get him back." He was staring directly at Yoh as he said it. Hao looked on in dismay.

"And you want Yoh to go along." Fear gnawed at his stomach. He was confused when Amidamaru smiled at him.

"No, actually, I want both of you."

Wolf: Review plz!


	12. Chapter 12

Wolf: I own nothing.

"Why do they get to go and not me?" Anna screeched at Amidamaru as the rescue team prepared. "I have far more experience than either of those two!"

"Yes, Anna, but you still allow your temper to get the better of you." Amidamaru replied patiently, inspecting his arsenal of weapons.

"And that killer doesn't? He tried to kill his brother for touching him!" Amidamaru however was unmoved by Anna's rage.

"That was then, this is now." He replied. "Hao has shown a good aptitude for fighting, and a cool head in battle. His brother is also quick on his feet and good at improvising, and he can keep Hao in line."

"I could keep him in line." Anna muttered darkly, dropping one hand over the knife strapped to her belt. Amidamaru sighed.

"Anna, it has been decided, and if you argue with me further I'll put you in lockup." Anna shut her mouth and stalked away, hurling a hate-laden glare at Hao and Yoh strapping pistols to their belts. Hao looked at Yoh. Yoh merely sighed and shook his head.

"You two almost ready?" The twins looked up and saluted as Amidamaru marched up. "At ease."

"Yes, sir, we're just about ready."

"Got your body armour on?"

"Yes sir." Amidamaru hunkered down so that he was eye level with the two boys.

"Now, I want you to listen." His voice was soft and gentle. "No matter what happens in there, I need you two to make sure you stick together at all times. You two make sure that the other gets out, no matter what, understand?"

"Of course." Hao replied, eyes determined. Yoh nodded in agreement. Amidamaru chuckled and ruffled their hair, before getting up and striding into the middle of the room.

"Listen up!" Amidamaru's voice boomed through the room, silencing the chatter. "We are doing a double-pronged attack. One team will attack the rear of the base, and the other the front. Now there will be one smaller team, the retrieval team that will be actually going in and retrieving our target. That team consists of myself, Silva, Yoh and Hao. We need the rest of you to keep those military monkeys off our asses until we can get out of there. Any questions?" There was an assortment of murmurs, but no one came forward. "Move out!"

%&%&%&%

Yoh, Hao, Silva and Amidamaru peered down at the Angel base. It was situated in a dip in the landscape, hills on all sides. The theory behind this was that they would be able to see the enemy as they approached. But, Amidamaru pointed out that it also made them sitting ducks in event of aerial or grenade attacks; they wouldn't be able to get up and out fast enough.

The whole base was aboveground, another tactical error in Amidamaru's mind. A whole base aboveground was easier to blast to smithereens, or burn to the ground. He felt that this sort of work was typical of the Angels of Justice, arrogance in believing they would not be challenged.

The base itself was exterior stone, with no inner fortification of steel or any other type of metal. Both the forward and rear entrance were clearly marked, too easy. Amidamaru also knew of the escape tunnel, concealed under a rock. This would have been clever, only the rock was the only one of its kind in the grassy, rolling plain that surrounded the base. It was this secret entrance that the retrieval team would use to get inside the base.

"I'm still not quite sure why we're on the retrieval team." Yoh whispered, peering into the darkness, as they waited for the signal to go.

"The target is a young man, the same age as you two." Amidamaru explained. "We feel he may be more willing to cooperate if he sees some people his own age with us. Mind you, he still liable to be half out of his mind with pain and fear."

"So be careful how we approach him, is that what you're saying?" Hao asked, eyes tracking the guards at the front base entrance by their flashlight movements. "Those fools are right out in the open. Hah, anyone could shoot them down easily."

"Yes, well we never said they were the smartest, did we?" Silva smirked, and then lifted his head just slightly. "Looks like this is it."

As he said that a roar came up from the hill on the far side of the valley, closest to the front entrance. The first squad swarmed over the hill and down towards the guards manning the front door. The two guards visibly panicked, firing off a couple of shots before calling for backup.

On the other side of the base the guards at the back door were hearing the commotion and getting ready to help, when the second squad struck. These guards too panicked, and began also calling for help. The result of this mischief was that the base's occupants were so confused and preoccupied that a retrieval team would have no trouble getting in and getting out.

Amidamaru flicked one ear forward, the signal for them to move. The four of them crawled through the long grass to the emergency exit. There were no codes, no locks on the door, another indication of the Angels' arrogance. Amidamaru and Silva merely shifted the stone, revealing the passageway.

The long passage curved down for awhile and then up again. It was a simple limestone tunnel, an indication that it was simply a natural part of the landscape that the Angels had used to their advantage. The passageway ended at a short metal staircase leading up to another door. Like the one to outside, this one hadn't been bothered to be locked.

Amidamaru opened the door slowly, both him and Silva on either side of it. He peered out; pistol in hand, in case the door was guarded. Cautiously he swung his head in both directions, looking the hallway that they had come out into.

There was no one to be seen, but he could hear panicked shouts and gunshots further on. He smiled grimly, knowing they only had so much time in which to do this. He motioned for the others to come up.

"Keep your weapons out." He whispered. "And remember, shoot to kill." The twins nodded and followed after Amidamaru and Silva, watching their backs. Amidamaru led them with surety through the base. They saw no one; everyone was either hiding, or outside fighting.

They soon came to an iron door, the way into the small cellblock that all Angel bases had. The key ring had been unceremoniously dumped on the floor, forgotten in their caretaker's panic. Amidamaru scooped them up and opened the iron door.

A thick, heavy stench rolled out over them. Hao wrinkled his nose and a small growl rose unbidden to his throat. The smell reminded him of the Pits; it was the same mixture of sweat, urine, feces, blood, fear and aggression. The only difference was that he could tell this smell came from one person only.

"You two, go in and find him." Amidamaru whispered. "We'll stand guard." Yoh and Hao nodded and slipped inside. The cellblock was poorly lit, but they could see the rows of barred cells, like cages, lined up on either side of them.

In the closest one to the door on the left lay a young man huddled in the corner, sleeping restlessly on a pile of dirty straw. He was clearly the Clan Leader's son, as evidenced by the bright green hair and mottled grey-brown hawk's wings partially folded against his back.

The young Hawk's skin was pale as death and his breath came in small raspy pants. His body was coated with dirt and blood and a heavy manacle was fastened onto one skinny ankle, chaffing the skin hard enough to make it bleed. What held the twins' horrified attention however was the dirty, bloody bandaged stump where his right arm should have been.

Hao gulped and used the keys to open the cell. The noise roused Lyserg, who, as soon as he saw them, sat up quickly and spread his wings, fluffing the feathers out to make himself look more threatening. His eyes, a startling green, revealed a mixture of feverish hate and fear.

"Cat." He snarled in a hoarse voice, eying Yoh with a poisonous glare. Yoh gave Hao a helpless look. Hao sighed and crouched down in front of Lyserg, who backed into the corner, eyes huge with fear and confusion.

"I'm not a Cat, I'm a Dog." Hao said quietly. "I have as much reason to hate Cats, and those I may share another time, and yet I am companion to them." He turned his head slightly to indicate Yoh. "He is my brother. We are here to get you out and back to your people." Lyserg's eyes slowly betrayed a wary hope. Hao unlocked the shackle around his ankle. "Can you walk?" Lyserg nodded mutely and allowed Hao to help him to his feet. He tensed when Yoh gripped his arm and flung it over his shoulders, supporting him, but relaxed looking into Yoh's gentle eyes.

Amidamaru nodded once in satisfaction when Yoh and Hao came out of the cellblock. Hao had wrapped an arm around Lyserg's waist, doing his best to avoid brushing up against the stump of Lyserg's right arm. Hao and Yoh's support seemed to be the only thing holding Lyserg upright as he sagged limply in their grasp.

Silva took the injured Hawk in his arms and cradled him to his chest; looking for all the world like he was holding a baby. Lyserg didn't protest, instead he closed his eyes, drifting off into unconsciousness.

"Well done." Amidamaru praised the boys and then silently headed back the way they had come. They were even more cautious than before, laden with their precious bundle slumped in Silva's arms. None of them wanted to run into any trouble before they got out and Lyserg to safety.

Fate seemed to be on their side this night as they encountered no one as they stole back through the base to the emergency exit. Yoh carefully closed the door behind them, hoping if they were pursued that the guards would not think to look there immediately if it was closed tightly.

Once outside the base altogether they abandoned caution and ran full out across the wide, rolling plain to the distant forest that would conceal them. Shouts and shots reached their ears, but none seemed to be for them, though no one spared a moment to look back and see.

Once in the forest the team paused to catch their breath. Amidamaru took out a small earpiece and spoke into it, telling their other teams to back off and make their way back to their own base. He then watched the horizon in the direction they had come from.

In an instant the dark night erupted into a brief day as an explosion tore open the Angel base. As the initial light faded they could see a thick cloud of fire and ash rising up into the sky.

"Our boys do good work." Silva commented with satisfaction in his voice. Amidamaru huffed in agreement and then without a word headed deeper into the forest. They walked the entire way back to the base, fearful that a teleportation would cause damage to their sick and injured young Hawk.

When they did get back to the base the first peach and red lights of dawn were beginning to streak the star-studded sky. Yoh and Hao suppressed wide yawns as they followed Silva and Amidamaru to the infirmary.

Lyserg was laid down on the operating table. Faust clucked in sympathy for the young man. He carefully unwrapped the bandages on the severed arm. Yoh hissed at the sight of the wound. It had been cauterized, but allowed to fester. It oozed with evil-smelling pus and Lyserg whimpered in his sleep when Faust touched it lightly.

The doctor shook his head. "Even the Angels should be wise enough to treat their captives with some level of humanity."

"Why should they?" Hao growled. "They don't need him to be healthy, just alive long enough for the Avians to swear their fealty to the Angels." Amidamaru grunted and nodded.

"I must agree with you Hao." He looked into the twins' worn faces. "Now, get some sleep, there's nothing more you can do here now."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~&~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~&~~~~~~~~~~~  
Wolf: Review plz!


	13. Chapter 13

Wolf: I own nothing.

The next morning the twins rushed through their breakfast and chores, eager to see Lyserg. They felt inexplicably protective of the young Hawk and were worried that he might have taken a turn for the worse in the night. So as soon as the two of them were done what needed to be done they raced to the infirmary.

Once there however they paused. Liam Diethel was sitting by his son's bed, and the twins were uncertain as to whether they should intrude on them or not. Then, Liam looked up and spotted them and motioned for them to come in with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

Yoh and Hao went up slowly and each bowed to him. "You two helped rescue my son." Liam's voice was hoarse, but still strong.

"Yes, sir." Yoh answered. "My name is Yoh and this is my twin brother, Hao." Liam raised an eyebrow at that.

"A Cat and Dog, twins." He murmured. "How unusual. And you two have known each other all your lives?"

"No, we didn't even know that the other existed until about six months ago." Hao answered.

"Hmm, you two seem like you've always been with each other, you seem so together." Liam was visibly surprised. Hao smiled wryly.

"It wasn't always like this." He admitted softly.

"I'll bet. Knowing how Dogs are treated, you were probably a slave, and so had very little faith in Cats."

"It was a little worse than that." Hao replied quietly. "But, I'd rather not talk about it." Liam nodded in understanding. Yoh moved over to the bed, looking down at Lyserg.

He was unconscious, his skin still pale as death. His breathing came in quiet, shuddering pants and his eyes moved restlessly beneath the lids. A fine sheen of sweat coated his skin and upon his cheeks was the red flush of fever, standing out stark against the white of his skin.

He had been cleaned of the dirt and blood coating him, and his wound rebound with clean bandages and pinned to his side. The twins could now see the blue tattoos on his remaining arm.

"Can you give him his arm back?" Yoh asked. Liam shook his head gently.

"No, it's been too long, and the arm's nerves have long since gone dead." He explained.

"So he'll have to get a prosthetic arm?" Hao queried.

"Yes, but it will be one of ours." Liam replied.

"What do you mean?" Yoh asked. "Aren't all prosthetics the same?" Liam smiled slightly.

"No, Avian prosthetics are markedly more advanced." He took a deep breath and launched into his explanation. "We have found a way to link tiny microscopic wires to nerve endings in order to connect them to the brain. When placed inside a prosthetic and the prosthetic programmed to react to nerve impulses we can essentially create for them a new, working artificial arm."

"That's incredible!" Yoh cried delightedly. "Are you going to do it soon?"

"We need to wait until Lyserg's body heals some more. The trauma of the operation would probably kill him in his weakened state."

"Oh, but that's still amazing."

"Something like that could revolutionize the medical world." Hao added.

"Yes, but it can also be used to create more weapons and things used for destruction." Liam replied stiffly. "We all know where the so-called Angels put their money for development into."

"I think you are wise not to share your discoveries with them." They all turned at the sound of Amidamaru's voice. The Snow Leopard sauntered into the room, gently brushing stray hairs off Lyserg's sleeping face as he passed.

"Yes, well, we are going to share them with you." Liam replied. "Our advances with prosthetics, teleportation and laser-cutting, among other things." Amidamaru's ears pricked forward.

"Laser-cutting?" He inquired.

"Yes, we can use lasers to cut through rock, and most metals actually." Amidamaru rubbed his chin, thinking.

"I am wondering if we could reverse-engineer the laser-cutting technology into weaponry of some kind." He murmured. "I know that your kind is not fond of warfare, but in this situation we need all the advantages we can get."

"I understand that." Liam sighed. "I can bring the technology, along with my top scientists, here to help you try and decipher it." Amidamaru nodded and then looked at his watch.

"Forgive me, but I have a meeting to attend to." He bowed respectfully. "You two, don't disturb the Clan leader." He told the twins.

"Oh don't worry about them, it's been good talking to them." Amidamaru smiled and then strode out of the room.

"I hope this doesn't seem rude to ask, but Amidamaru makes you sound as though you are some kind of king, and yet your title is Clan leader." Liam laughed slightly.

"Indeed, it does sound a little lesser than it is." He replied. "The entire species of Avian is known as the Clan. The smaller sects are known as tribes, and each have their own leader that answers to me." He explained. "As such, I suppose you could call me a king." Hao nodded in understanding. He then turned to Yoh.

"We should go, we have training." He told his brother. Yoh nodded and bowed again to the Clan leader. Hao did the same. The Hawk inclined his head slightly to them.

"It was good to speak with you." He said as they walked out. "And perhaps you'll be comfortable enough someday to tell me what you have been through."

%&%&%&%

Hao and Yoh spent a lot of time checking in on Lyserg in the next couple of days. The Clan leader seemed grateful for their company and talked of all kinds of things. He even insisted that they call him Liam after the second day.

His biggest source of amazement was the fact that the two of them flew on dragon-back. He had indeed told them that they were domesticated as pets, but no one had tried riding them, because there was no need. He told them that domesticated dragons, and even some wild, would feel a connection to one person, and that person, when they found them, was their Chosen, and they would never leave them. He also said that he would bring more of the dragons that have not yet found their Chosen to the base to meet the rebels.

"Have you seen the Angels of Justice's little angel before?" Hao asked on the third day. Lyserg's fever had broken and he was resting more easily. They were sure he would wake up soon. Liam shifted slightly, wings opening and closing as he considered Hao's question.

"Yes, I know of her. I remember her parents, they were one of the few that chose not to live in a tribe, and so were isolated." He closed his eyes. "The first time we realized that she had been taken was when we were running a routine survey of all the tribes and isolates. We found the parents dead, but the little girl nowhere to be found." He sighed deeply. "It wasn't until years later that we saw her again, on the holovids. They had taken her when she was very young, and moulded her into their little mascot, their little angel."

"They called her the sign from the gods that the Angels were meant to be in power." Yoh said angrily.

"Yes, such arrogance." Liam said. "That poor little girl is completely brainwashed by them. They don't even call her by her name anymore."

"What was her name?"

"Jeanne."

Anymore conversation was cut off by a soft moan from Lyserg. As one the watchers turned to the bed and watched as Lyserg's face scrunched up and he slowly opened his eyes.

"Father?" He croaked weakly. Yoh ran to get him some water as Liam carefully lifted his son into his arms and embraced him gently.

"My son, I was so worried." He breathed. Lyserg murmured inarticulately and nuzzled into his chest. A rough sob then shook his thin body. Liam rubbed his back gently.

"Shh, it's over now, my son. It's over." He murmured over and over again. Lyserg slowly calmed down and Yoh offered him the water. Liam held the glass to Lyserg's lips, letting him drink his fill. Lyserg then turned his head to look at Yoh and Hao.

"I remember you two." He said softly. "You got me out of there."

"We did." Hao answered for the both of them.

"You're twins."

"We are." Yoh replied. Lyserg shook his head.

"I don't like Cats." He said with tired anger in his voice.

"Don't hate Cats." Hao countered. "Hate the Angels, they're the real enemy here. Believe me when I tell you that I have met many good Cats while I've been here, Yoh being the best of them in my opinion." Yoh blushed with embarrassment and pleasure at Hao's words. Lyserg quietly watched the both of them, not saying a word.

"My son, how did it happen?" Liam asked. Lyserg shifted slightly in his arms.

"I was flying with Morphine, and all the sudden a hovercar starts chasing after me. I tried to get away, but it threw out a net, and once they had me, they flew off with me. They took me to the base, and the Archangel was there." A soft growl escaped him. "He cut off my arm. I was awake, and it hurt so much. I'll never forget the look on his face, he was enjoying it! And then they just left me to rot, until I was rescued."

Liam let out a soft moan as Lyserg finished his tale. "Monsters." He hissed furiously, wrapping his arms tighter around his son.

"Father?"

"Yes, my son?"

"I want to help bring them down, I want the Angels to pay for what they did to me." Liam looked down into his son's eyes alight with feverish determination.

"They will pay, and we are going to help these people bring them down." Liam soothed. "But, do not let hate completely rule you my son." Lyserg looked up into his father's worried eyes and his tense shoulders sagged a little. He nodded, resting his head against his father's chest.

"Ok, father, I'll try." He said tiredly. Liam smiled and lowered him back down onto the bed.

"Rest my son, tomorrow we will have the operation." Lyserg smiled slightly at this.

"Yeah, and then when you're better we'll show you around the base!" Lyserg's smile got wider at Yoh's enthusiasm. As his eyes slipped closed he managed to murmur sleepily

"I'd like that."

Wolf: Review plz!


	14. Chapter 14

Wolf: I own nothing.

Yoh and Hao entered the medical bay to see Lyserg off into his operation. Liam and Amidamaru were already there with the team of Avian doctors that would give Lyserg his new mechanical arm. Faust would observe and help as much as he could, learning to do the operation himself by assisting.

"So, Lyserg, how are you feeling?" Yoh asked. Lyserg turned his head and smiled slightly, face looking small and white.

"A little nervous." He replied shakily. Liam gently squeezed his son's hand.

"You'll be alright." He assured. "The doctors know what they are doing."

"We're ready." One of the doctors said. They placed the case containing Lyserg's new arm on the table beside him. They opened it, revealing the shiny, titanium steel of Lyserg's prosthetic. "Shall we begin?"

"Are you ready?" Liam asked gently. Lyserg gulped and nodded. Yoh and Hao crowded by the bed, looking down at the young Hawk.

"We'll see you in a little bit, ok?" Yoh said. Lyserg nodded as the doctors brought a mask over his face. Automatically he breathed in, tasting sweetness as he inhaled the sedative. His eyes grew heavy and the faces of his father and the twins began to swim...

Blink. That's all it had felt like. Lyserg wasn't even sure that the operation had gone except that most of his right side was numb. He knew that was from the drugs they had given him during the operation. He turned his head to the right and looked at his new arm.

The arm itself mimicked the look of a real arm as much as it could. Lyserg could see the ball joint where his forearm and upper arm were supposed to connect at the elbow. His eyes travelled further up, to the shoulder, where he could see the prosthetic fitted into its cuff.

The arm itself was detachable, the cuff, which provided the interface between the arm and the rest of the body, had been surgically welded into what was left of his shoulder to keep it in place. That was why his body was numb, the process was supposed to be excruciatingly painful.

He couldn't move the arm, but that was because of the drugs. The doctors always tested their prosthetics before wrapping up the operation. The 'skin' of the prosthetic could feel, not as well as human skin, but enough to gain a response from running something over it or tapping a finger. As Lyserg looked at his arm he noticed one more thing; etched into it were his old tattoos.

"What do you think?" Lyserg jumped a little and turned his head quickly.

"Father! How long have you been there?" Lyserg asked in a hoarse voice.

"I've been here since the end of the operation." Liam replied.

"Why didn't you say something?"

"I saw that you were looking over your new arm and decided to wait until you had fully inspected it." Liam explained. "Well? What do you think of it?"

"It looks strange on me, the blue-grey of the titanium steel stands out." Lyserg replied. "I do not think I can make anymore judgements until I can see how it moves."

"I think that is a wise choice." Liam said thoughtfully. "The doctors said that they will wait until the pain goes down to allow the drugs to wear off, then you will be able to see just how well your new arm works."

"So I have to wait?" Lyserg could not keep the disappointment from his voice.

"Yes, my son, you must wait. And..." Liam reached over to place his hand on Lyserg's head. "You should get as much rest as possible, understand?"

"Yes, father." Lyserg shifted slightly. "Where are Yoh and Hao?" He asked suddenly.

"You seem to like the two of them." Liam observed. "They were here earlier, until Hao dragged Yoh away for training." Liam gently stroked Lyserg's hair. "Now, get some sleep."

"Alright." Lyserg yawned and let his eyelids slip close and his mind drift away.

%&%&%&%

Lyserg could feel the pins and needles sensation of sensitivity returning to his body. It had taken four days, but the doctors finally said that the pain would have gone down enough for Lyserg to bear. However the pain would be enough that Lyserg would continue to take painkillers for another couple of weeks. He didn't care though; the doctors had also said that tomorrow he could get out of bed and walk around for the first time.

As sensation returned so did pain, buzzing around his shoulder and the cuff of his prosthetic. Lyserg gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, waiting for his body to get used to the pain. After a little while just that happened, and Lyserg realized that he had been clenching his fists, both fists.

In fascination he willed his new arm to move and it did, coming up to his face. He moved each finger individually, wiggling them. The prosthetic moved smoothly, seamlessly. He placed his other hand on the metal, only mildly surprised by its faint warmth. He knew the tech was designed to adjust its temperature based on its surroundings.

Touching the arm was slightly strange. He could feel the touch, but it was muted somehow. He knew that he would never experience pain in that arm, the wires and circuitry could not translate that to the brain like they could the other sensations of touch.

"That is neat." Lyserg looked up to find Yoh staring in amazement at his arm from the foot of his bed. Hao came walking up at a more leisurely pace, indicating that once again in Yoh's excitement he had run.

"Do you have full movement?" Hao asked. Lyserg nodded and held out his new arm. Hao took it and ran his hand over the warm metal. "Can you feel that?"

"Yes, but not like I would with my other arm, the sensation is much less." Lyserg explained. Yoh reached over and lightly tapped the forearm with one fingernail. A slight, high note rang out from it.

"Did you feel that?" Yoh asked.

"Yes, but it's like my actual arm is encased in the metal and I can only feel the vibrations from the metal itself, not the actual touch."

"I see." Hao replied.

"Where's your dad?" Yoh asked, looking around.

"Commander Amidamaru wanted to discuss the laser-cutting technology with him." Lyserg explained. "Do you really think that they could make weapons out of it?"

"If they could it would turn the tide of this war we're fighting." Hao replied. "Think of it, we'd never run out of bullets and something like that is certainly going to cause more damage than a bullet."

"I suppose you're right." Lyserg replied. "My people don't like war, though. I can't imagine that this alliance is sitting too well with them."

"What do you think of it?" Yoh asked curiously, head tilted to one side. Lyserg snarled slightly.

"I want to make the Angels pay for what they did, in particular the Archangel." He said firmly. "I will fight, not only for myself, but for all the others that have suffered like I did at their hands."

%&%&%&%

"Careful now, my son." Liam cautioned as Lyserg stepped off the bed and stood shakily on his own two feet. His wings opened slightly to balance him as he tottered around the room, getting his legs back.

"I'm ok, father." He said. "Where are the twins?" Liam chuckled.

"I thought you'd ask that." He smiled. "Hao took Yoh for training, Silva here will take you to them." Lyserg nodded and put on fresh clothes. He wore only dark pants and a pair of boots, leaving his wings free to move comfortably as shirts could not. The women of his species generally wore halter tops that tied at the neck and around the lower back to allow their wings freedom.

Silva smiled at the young Hawk and then motioned for him to follow. Lyserg was uncomfortably aware of the curious stares aimed at his arm as they walked through the hallways.

"They'll get used to it in time." Silva assured in his deep, calm voice. "It's simply something new to them, they mean nothing by it." Lyserg nodded in understanding.

They soon came to the training room. Silva left Lyserg at the door, answering a call from one of the other officers. Lyserg stepped in and looked around. Around the walls were various forms of exercise equipment, weights, treadmills, etc. His eye however was drawn to the center of the room, where a large sparring floor had been erected.

Hao and Yoh were fighting on it. Lyserg was surprised by each twin's ferocity and strength. But, what startled him more were the innumerable scars upon Hao's exposed chest, back and arms. Yoh noticed him standing there and called off Hao.

Lyserg walked over, still staring at Hao. "By all the unnamed gods, what happened to you?" He asked, horrified. He saw Hao stiffen and immediately blanched, regretting his outburst. "I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have.." He trailed off as Hao put up a hand, smiling slightly.

"I don't mind." He said. "If you hang around here long enough you'll hear the story, better to hear it from me I guess." Hao sat down cross-legged on the floor. Yoh sat down beside him and Lyserg carefully sat in front of the two of them, waiting. Finally, Hao spoke.

"These scars are from when I was a Pit fighter." He explained. Lyserg jerked, startled. He'd heard of the Pits, heard of the terrible things that happened there.

"You were in that terrible place?" He whispered. "For how long?"

"Eight years." Hao replied, eyes haunted. Lyserg couldn't speak for shock and horror.

"How did you get out?" He finally managed to choke out.

"Yoh rescued me." Hao replied, smiling at his brother.

"You must have been so grateful." Hao let out a harsh bark of laughter.

"Yeah, so grateful I almost strangled him to death." Lyserg blinked in confusion.

"Why would you do that?" He asked. Hao sighed.

"You have to understand Lyserg, the only interaction for the last years that I had with people was to be dragged into an arena, or to fight them. I learned very quickly that if they can touch you, they can hurt you. Getting out of that place was not enough to dispel that, and the first time Yoh touched me, I reacted like I would have in the Pits."

"But...you don't do that anymore, do you?" Lyserg asked, suddenly nervous of the strong and dangerous Dog in front of him. Hao chuckled kindly and Lyserg relaxed slightly at the sound.

"No, I've pretty much been cured of that. Otherwise Yoh and I would not be able to spar, I would simply kill him. It took some time, and we really didn't see a huge breakthrough in the breakdown of my destructive behaviour until after Yoh got hurt."

"Yoh got hurt?" Lyserg looked to Yoh, questioningly. Yoh smiled and twisted slightly, showing him the small scars like craters in the moon in his side and hip.

"I got shot. I couldn't get back to the base for three days." He said softly. "I think having that happen made Hao think about what would happen if he lost me, and it broke those last little barriers that prevented him from allowing himself to feel."

"It's kind of unfortunate that it had to happen that way though." Yoh folded his ears back and dipped his head slightly.

"Perhaps, but it worked. Since then we don't allow each other out of our sight. We're a team, brothers." He then bounced to his feet, a gleam in his eyes. "Enough with this depressing talk, let's go outside! We have something exciting to show you."

Wolf: Review plz!


	15. Chapter 15

Wolf: I own nothing!

Lyserg followed the twins back through the base. "So, what do you want to show me?" He asked.

"It's a surprise." Yoh chuckled and the pushed open the door he was in front of. Lyserg went through and gasped in wonder. The valley floor stretched out in front of him, a tapestry of colour.

"By all the unnamed gods." He breathed, stepping further out onto the springy green grass. "This place is beautiful."

"Don't you have anything like it at home?" Hao asked in surprise.

"No, we make our villages in the crags of the mountains. We're surrounded by rocks all the time." Lyserg shook his head. "I've never seen so much vibrant life in one place."

"You should see the jungles." Yoh replied. "They're even more vibrant, but really, really hot, too."

"I'll have to see them sometime." Lyserg said distractedly, staring up at the bright blue sky. "I'll bet the view from up high is amazing." He grimaced then and blushed, seeming to remember whose company he was in. "Oops, I guess you really wouldn't know about that." Hao smiled mysteriously.

"Actually..." He lifted his thumb and forefinger to his lips and let out an ear-piercing whistle. Lyserg's mouth dropped open as Kochi and Cho came romping across the valley, eager to see their Chosen.

"Lyserg, this is Cho, and that's Kochi." Yoh said, scratching underneath Cho's chin. The dragons soon noticed the young Hawk and, being curious, they trotted over to him, sniffing and chirping at them. Lyserg lifted his hands to them.

The sight of his metal arm glinting in the sun made them squeak and burble excitedly, curiosity further aroused. They proceeded to sniff, nudge and lick the prosthetic, all the while emitting whistles and clicks to each other.

"They're very curious creatures aren't they?" Hao chuckled.

"Dragons generally are. You can't leave doors open or anything anywhere where they can get it, or they'll try to play with it, and as you probably know, they don't play very gently." Yoh nodded and chuckled. Cho had gotten a hold of one of the ploughs and had reduced it to a pile of twisted trash in a matter of about a half an hour.

"So, you want to stretch those wings of yours?" Hao asked, mounting Kochi.

"It would be good to be able to fly again after so long confined to the ground." Lyserg replied with a sigh. Yoh grinned and scrambled up onto Cho. The two dragons gave a mighty flap of their wings and were airborne.

Lyserg stretched out his wings, extending them to their full length. The sun winked off the feathers, turning the wings a myriad of shades of colour. He hop-skipped a couple of steps back, and then ran forward. He leapt into the air, pumping his wings furiously to gain altitude.

"Excellent!" Yoh cried as Lyserg reached them, panting slightly from the exertion.

"We should probably keep this flight short." Hao warned. "We don't want to overstrain your body too much, and I'm not sure how much weight Cho or Kochi could hold on their backs." Lyserg nodded, wise enough to listen to his body's limitations.

But, oh it felt so good to be in the air again, to feel the currents beneath his wings, tugging at him, guiding him. A warm updraft billowed below him and he ceased flapping and allowing himself to float on the warm air, closing his eyes.

"You look a lot more relaxed." Hao commented. Lyserg opened his eyes and looked at him.

"That's because this is my element, this is where my kind are most comfortable." He explained.

"Your body must be lighter than ours, it's said that a Cat or Dog could not use wings like a bird to fly because our bones are not hollow like the small birds of the air." Yoh commented.

"You are correct. While our bones aren't hollow, they are made out of a lighter, more porous material than yours are." Lyserg replied, flapping a little as the updraft started to cool. "I think we ought to go down now, I fear my energy level is not quite at what I thought it might be."

Hao nodded and the twins directed their dragons to land once more. Cho and Kochi romped away to playfully wrestle with each other as the twins and Lyserg sat down on the grass.

"Hao, I have something I wish to ask." Lyserg said after a moment of reflection.

"What is it, Lyserg?" Hao asked.

"Well, I plan to become a part of this rebellion, and that includes fighting. But, it occurs to me that because of my upbringing in a society that abhors war I do not know how to fight, so..." Lyserg hesitated a moment. "I wish to know if you will train me to fight as you do your brother."

Hao regarded him for a moment, weighing the sincerity of his words. "You wish for me to teach you?" He asked at last. Lyserg nodded.

"If it's not any trouble." Hao chuckled slightly.

"It's no trouble, I only need to know that you're serious. I don't take on those that aren't serious about learning technique from me."

"I'm very serious." Lyserg said with some surprise. "I would have thought you'd have realized that by now. I want to help."

"There were, and are, any number of opportunities for you to realize that you don't want to do this." Hao replied evenly. "This rebellion is a messy business. People get hurt, people get killed. We kill people. Are you certain you want to be involved in that?"

"Yes." Lyserg said without hesitation and with utter conviction.

"Then I will teach you." Hao replied simply. Lyserg grinned.

"Wonderful!" He cried. "When do we begin?"

"Right now." Lyserg started in surprise.

"Right now?" He asked, voice a little shaky. "You want to fight me, now?"

"No, not fight. Forgive me if I gave that impression." Hao amended. "My training starts with finding your strengths and weaknesses. That way I can figure out a fighting style that works for you."

"Oh, I see." Lyserg settled down, shifting into a more comfortable position on the ground. "So, what do you want to know?"

"I already know most of what I need to know actually." Hao revealed. "I only need to ask a few questions."

"Ask away."

"If your bones are more hollow, does that also mean that they are a little more frail?" Hao asked.

"Well, yes. They are not as frail as our less intelligent winged cousins, but it is easier for us to break bones than it is for you."

"That is a disadvantage then." Hao said thoughtfully. "You will have to be quick, and make sure that they can't hit you too often then." Lyserg nodded and Hao continued. "Your wings could be an advantage and a disadvantage. On the one hand they could be used to temporarily disorient an attacker, or lift you momentarily out of harm's reach. On the other hand I wager they're very sensitive, and it would prove to be your downfall if they were harmed in a fight." Lyserg nodded. "When you feel threatened, do you stretch out your wings?"

"Yes. It's a reflexive move to make ourselves look bigger."

"You'll want to work on suppressing that, it makes you a bigger target." Hao noted. "I think your biggest advantage will be your prosthetic."

"How?"

"It's metal, heavy and damn near unbreakable. You use that in a fight it will cause serious damage. Are you naturally right-handed?"

"Yes."

"Good, then it won't be too hard to use your right arm to do most of your attacking." Hao said with satisfaction. "Also it can be your shield, your way of preventing a blow from breaking bone." He thought for a moment. "During training I should probably wear some form of protection." He said reflectively.

"Lyserg!" Lyserg turned to see his father beckoning to him from the base door. Lyserg got up, sighing ruefully.

"I'm sorry, but it looks like I must go." Hao and Yoh nodded.

"Come down to the training room tomorrow, we'll get you started with some exercises." Hao called as he left. Then he and Yoh sat quietly on the grass, enjoying the quiet.

"You were screaming again last night." Yoh mentioned almost idly after some time. Looking over at him Hao saw the questioning look on his face and knew the comment was anything but idle.

"Was I?" He asked. Yoh's look became concerned.

"I really worry about you Hao. These dreams don't happen often but it's scary to watch you and listen to you when they do. It's obvious they're really bad, it might help if you talk about it."

Hao turned his face away, remaining silent. A hand gripped his arm and he looked back again into Yoh's pleading eyes. He couldn't ignore the combination of love, distress and fear in those eyes. He sighed and turned his body so that he was facing Yoh.

"I dream about the Pits." He said softly. "In particular about...the young ones that I...that I killed." The words worked themselves out of him with difficulty. "There were always young ones, Dogs like me that they thought would do well in the Pits. I killed them all. I tell myself that it was better that they died by my hand, rather than someone else."

"Why is that?"

"I made sure it was as painless as possible." Hao replied. The words came in a rush now, wanting to be heard. "I see their faces though, in my dreams, they accuse me, call me murderer. I...I can't escape them."

And then to both their surprise he put his face in his hands and a small sob escaped him. Yoh scooted close and wrapped his arms around Hao's shaking form. One hand reached out and grabbed Yoh's arm, seeking a firm anchor in his storm of emotion.

"It's alright." Yoh soothed. "You did what you had to do to survive, nothing more." Hao lifted his head slightly and sniffled softly. "You said yourself you were not cruel to them. I myself am not sure that it wasn't a mercy to kill those poor souls. I think death was kinder than the life that they would have suffered in the Pits."

Hao rubbed at his eyes and nodded. "A mercy killing." He repeated. "I always saw myself in their frightened, confused faces." He revealed. "I sometimes wished...sometimes wished that someone had offered me the same kindness of death."

"But then you would have never met me." Yoh replied. "Some good has come out of this." Hao nodded, a small smile crossing his face. Yoh hugged him tightly. "Next time you have a nightmare I want you to get me. I will talk to you, go with you to get a hot drink, whatever it takes to dispel the dream. Can you do that?"

"I think so."

"Promise me." Yoh said firmly. Hao sighed and hugged his brother.

"I promise."

Wolf: Review plz!


	16. Chapter 16

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Come on Horo, you've got to use your head." Hao scolded as he helped the Husky to his feet. "You can't just go in, blindly hitting out, you've got to think. Measure your opponent, take the time to gauge him before simply leaping in."

"Fighting's not supposed to be about smarts." Horohoro countered.

"Horo, listen to him." Yoh said from the sidelines of the ring. "He's only been telling you this for months. You've got to be smart when you fight, otherwise you're going to wind up hurt."

"Aw, Yoh. I thought you were on my side?" Horohoro complained. Yoh shrugged his shoulders and grinned.

"I don't want you to get out there and get killed, now do I?" He asked. "Think of it like this- you wouldn't use the same tool to cut stalks of grain as you would to cut down a tree, would you?"

"Of course not."

"It's the same with people." Hao continued patiently. "One man will fight differently than another, and so one must adjust one's fighting tactics in order to match that."

"Okay, I can see where you're going with this." Horohoro nodded. "You two are pieces of work, you know that?"

"Why do you say that?" Yoh chuckled.

"Because you gang up on me like this."

"We're just trying to get this through that thick Doggie skull of yours." Hao teased reaching out to rap Horohoro on the head. Horohoro batted his hand away and then laughed.

"You know, I think Anna's the only one in this whole base that still doesn't like you, Hao." Horohoro commented. Hao grimaced.

"Anna can go suck a lemon." On more than one occasion Anna had publically taunted and ridiculed him. He felt that Anna was trying to enrage him, to give herself an excuse to get rid of him by saying that he was still vicious. He refused to rise to the bait, finding satisfaction each time in her frustration when her taunts failed to get the expected result.

"I don't disagree with that. The girl needs to lighten up." Horohoro said darkly, folding his arms.

"Uh, hello? Am I late?" Hao, Yoh and Horohoro looked up. Lyserg stood in the doorway, shuffling his wings uncertainly.

"No, Lyserg, you're a little early actually." Yoh assured the young Hawk. Horohoro stared at him open-mouthed.

"You guys didn't mention this!" He cried. "Since when are you friends with an Avian?"

"Since our mission to rescue him, remember?" Yoh asked.

"Oh, that's right, I forgot about that." Horohoro rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Hey, I'm Horohoro."

"I'm Lyserg Diethel." Lyserg replied, inclining his head slightly. "It's good to meet a friend of Yoh and Hao."

"Nice to meet you two." Horohoro replied. "So, are you going to train with Hao, too?" Lyserg nodded.

"Today he says he is going to teach me exercises to give me strength, speed and stamina."

"Yes, and it will probably be very boring, so why don't you two go have some fun?" Hao suggested gently. Yoh looked unhappy about this, but nodded and led Horohoro out of the training room.

"I'm sorry if I haven't been spending much time with you." Yoh said as the two of them walked through the base aimlessly.

"Aw, it's ok. Now that I know that you've been helping Lyserg get back on his feet, I don't really mind."

"You sure?"

"Yoh, you know me, I can't hold a grudge." Yoh smiled lazily.

"That's good. Want to go outside and see if we can catch a few winks under a tree?" Horohoro chuckled.

"You're always so lazy, aren't you?" He joked, but agreed. The two of them meandered outside and laid down underneath one of the apple trees. The sun was out and had warmed the valley. Yoh yawned, the warmth making him drowsy. He was dozing when Horohoro's voice roused him.

"Hey Yoh?" Yoh opened his eyes. His friend sounded tentative, almost worried.

"What is it Horohoro?" Yoh asked, closing his eyes again.

"Would you think I was a coward if I told you I wasn't sure if I wanted to be a part of the fight anymore?" Yoh's eyes blinked open and he sat up, staring at the Husky in surprise.

"Why would I think that? And for that matter, what brought this on?" Horohoro fidgeted.

"Silva took me a couple times to the southern settlements." He explained. "I really liked it there, especially in the one with Kalim. I'm.. I'm just not sure I'm cut out for this." His ears drooped. "I think I just want to live in peace."

"Horo, that's nothing to be ashamed about." Yoh said, putting an arm around his friend. "This fight isn't for everybody, that's why we have those settlements."

"Do you think Hao will be upset that I want to cop out?" Horohoro asked.

"Why would he? And why are you worried?" Horohoro shrugged.

"I respect him. He's my sensei. I'm just worried he might think that...that I wasted his time." Yoh shook his head.

"No, he'll understand. And I think he'll feel better knowing that you at least know how defend yourself out there if the settlements were attacked."

"You really think so?" Horohoro asked hopefully.

"Listen, if you're that worried would you like me to break the news to him?" Horohoro nodded.

"He listens to you better than anyone else, so yah."

"Have you told anyone else yet?" Horohoro shook his head. "You should talk to Amidamaru. He'll be able to get you set up down there."

"Yeah." Horohoro said, standing up. "That's just what I'm going to do."

"Right now?" Yoh asked with some surprise.

"Yeah, I want to get it done before I chicken out." Horohoro replied with a self-mocking smile. He waved goodbye and headed inside.

%&%&%&%

Later on the twins were getting ready for bed. Hao was sitting up on the edge of his bed, reading. In the last few months he had taken himself from simple picture books to long, intelligent novels. He found that reading was a joy for him, it allowed him to escape the world for awhile, and perhaps believe in happy endings.

"Horohoro's going to go to the southern settlements." Hao looked up at Yoh's words and then went back to reading.

"That's cool." He said absently.

"He was worried that you might think he was chickening out." Hao looked up again and put down the book.

"Why would he think that?" He asked. Yoh shrugged.

"He thought that you might think that your work with him was all for nothing." Yoh replied. Hao sighed.

"I've known for some time that Horo was not going to be up for this life." He admitted. "He never really seemed too interested in his training after awhile. I don't think he ever practiced on his own."

"Why did you keep training him then?" Yoh asked curiously. Hao shrugged.

"I thought that if he was going to stay in spite of his unease, he may as well know how to defend himself. Truth be told I pushed him hard to try to get him to admit to himself that this was not for him."

"I thought you did that because you were frustrated with his lack of smart fighting?"

"That too." Hao admitted with a chuckle. "I'm not angry with him, this isn't for everyone and if living in the settlement makes him happy, that's all I need from him." He reached over to flick off the light. "Now get some sleep."

%&%&%&%

"Hao and Yoh?" The twins stopped in the middle of their sparring, which involved Yoh gripping Hao in a one-handed headlock and Hao preparing to flip him off. "The boss wants to see you." Yoh and Hao nodded. They got themselves cleaned up and headed to Amidamaru's office.

"Commander?" Amidamaru swivelled to face the twins.

"Good, you're here."

"What's this about, sir?" Hao asked.

"Do you remember the Leopard tribe that you encountered some months ago?" Amidamaru asked.

"With the little oracle girl?" Amidamaru nodded. "Of course."

"Well, they have asked that you join them and learn their ways. In particular the art of invisibility." The twins looked at each other.

"The art of invisibility?" Hao repeated sceptically. "Why would they want to instil their wisdom on outsiders anyways?"

"Opacho, their oracle, says it will be of help to you two, in your great destiny." Hao snorted derisively.

"This again." He sighed.

"You can't deny that there is something surrounding you two. In the six months that you've known each other you've managed to rescue an Avian prince."

"That was with the team." Hao protested.

"Perhaps, but it is still a great feat for ones so young." Amidamaru replied. "We cannot ignore these people's wishes. We are their allies and we wish to stay on good terms with them."

"What about Lyserg's training?" Hao asked.

"And the language barrier?" Yoh added.

"I have thought of that. I asked for a couple months before we sent you down there. One, so that you could learn their language, and two, so that you could get Lyserg's training to a point where he could spar with other people to continue it. Silva has already agreed to take over, if you agree with that decision."

"I suppose we can't say no to the Leopards." Yoh sighed. "And it would be pretty cool to learn to be invisible." Hao nodded in agreement.

"Alright then, it's settled. The two of you have three months to take care of business and learn the language. Since Silva is the resident expert you should talk to him. You're both dismissed now."

Wolf: Review plz!


	17. Chapter 17

Wolf: I own nothing!

"**Leopard-speech"**

"**Come on Hao, the sun is long up, and so you must be too." **Silva switched on the twins' light. Yoh groaned and burrowed under his covers.

"**Silva, you don't need to turn on the light to wake only Hao up." **

"**You should be up as well." **Silva replied with a laugh. After teaching the basics of the Leopards' language Silva had decided that the best way for them to get comfortable with it was to speak only in Leopard-speech and allow them to only answer back in the same way. The twins still had three weeks left until they left but were comfortable enough with the language that they could have lengthy conversations with each other and Silva in it.

"**Why are you calling on us anyways, you know we were out late last night. We should be able to sleep." **Hao asked reproachfully. Yoh and Hao had helped in a small raid last night; that thankfully went off without a hitch.

"**Lyserg's father has asked that he spend a couple weeks at home." **Silva answered. **"He requests that you give him one last training session. He leaves in little more than an hour." **

"**I'll go to the training room then." **Hao replied swinging his legs over the bed and onto the floor with a faint grunt and straightening up gracefully with a yawn that made his jaw crack. Yoh flung his own covers back and stretched as he stood up. **"You don't have to come, Yoh." **Hao said with mild surprise. Yoh rarely got out of bed early unless he absolutely had to, and even then it was a fight.

"**I have some stuff I need to get done."** Yoh replied mysteriously. Hao, having taken off his bedclothes, stood and put his hands on his bare hips, a disbelieving smile on his face.

"**Like what?" **He demanded.

"**That's my secret."** Yoh replied cheekily and threw a pair of pants at Hao's head. **"Put some clothes on." **

%&%&%&%

"I think it's time to quit." Hao said to Lyserg after glancing at the clock in the training room. Lyserg nodded, panting a little. Hao could see the beginnings of a bruise on the lower left side of his chest and made a mental note to be sure to check his blows better next time.

"Yeah, I guess I'd better go get cleaned up to go home." Lyserg chuckled softly. "It seems odd to call it home now. This feels like home to me."

"It'll probably feel good to you to be out in the open air all day though." Hao commented as he wiped sweat off his face with a towel.

"Yeah, I guess." Lyserg replied. "I'll miss it here though. I'll miss you guys." Hao chortled.

"You'll be back before you know it."

"Yeah, and then soon after that you'll be gone too." Lyserg replied, wings drooping slightly. "I wish you wouldn't."

"You'll be fine. Silva's just as good a teacher as I am." Hao assured him. "Besides, you're coming along nicely. I think you could be sent out on a raid in the near future." Lyserg's wings lifted at this.

"You think so?" Equal parts excitement and anxiety cluttered Lyserg's voice. A half hopeful, half terrified look came into the Avian's bright green eyes. Hao knew that Lyserg lacked some confidence in his ability, and hoped that a raid would help him move past it.

"I know so." Hao said firmly. "Now, get dressed, your father will be waiting." Lyserg nodded and headed for the showers, Hao right behind him.

The hot water flowing down his body always loosens something inside him. Today it is the memory of another nightmare. Though Yoh talks to him after each one, reassuring him, Hao can never quite shake the creeping, ugly feeling on his skin for a couple hours. The nearly scalding water seems to take that feeling with it, running down his body and into the drain.

The act of showering is still one of Hao's favourite things about his new life. The act of becoming clean, and in such a pleasant manner, even now feels like a decadent privilege after his years in the Pits. As he cleans himself he inspects the scars running all along his body.

He can remember where he got most of them. A series of three parallel scars on his shoulder was where a massive bear raked him with his claws, the numerous little scars on his fingers and palms from where he gripped the blade of a weapon to wrest it away from his opponent. Hao was astounded to realize that some of the older scars were beginning to fade away.

"Who knows," he mused aloud to himself, Lyserg was long gone and his words echoed hollowly through the bathroom. "Maybe in years to come there will be no scars." But then he chuckled at himself, some of the scars were too deep to completely heal.

But it seemed that his body was mimicking the healing his mind and heart had already experienced. It was a profound moment, a moment in which Hao remembered with the same deference that fallen soldiers were remembered the care and patience Yoh had used to coax that healing in him.

With a shake of his head he turned off the shower, banishing the moment from his direct mind but enfolding it in his heart like a sweetheart's letter entrusted to a secret drawer, to be taken out later to bask in the warm feelings it invoked once more. Hao dried himself off and put on a fresh pair of pants, a green t-shirt, a pair of black, fingerless gloves and a long black trenchcoat. On his feet he wore a pair of sturdy black boots.

The clothes serve a purpose. They hide Hao's scars from the rest of the people on the base. He never got used to the expressions on people's faces when they saw them. The mix of horror, pity and outright fear were too much for Hao to bear, and so he hid the scars from prying eyes. The upside of this is it surrounded Hao with a faint but palpable air of mystery. He found he liked the dramatic effect, and decided to keep it.

As he exited the bathroom he was slammed into and knocked to the ground. Surprised and a little winded Hao blinked up into Yoh's grinning face. "Gotcha!" The triumphant Cat crowed happily. Hao grunted and gripped Yoh's forearms, flipping them over so that he was pinning Yoh to the ground.

"I think not." He said with a smirk. Yoh merely giggled and wiggled out from under Hao, though truth be told Hao did little to prevent his escape. He slowly got up, staring into Yoh's grinning face. His brother's tail was lashing back and forth in his excitement, and if that smile grew any wider it would split his face apart.

"Okay, give it up." Hao ordered. "What are you hiding?"

"What makes you think I'm hiding something?" Yoh asked cheekily, squirming a little in his enthusiasm.

"Because you look like you're about ready to pop." Hao replied, folding his arms across your chest. "Now, tell me what you're so pleased about."

"Can't tell you." Yoh sing-songed teasingly. "I have to show you instead." Hao sighed in mixed exasperation and resignation. Whatever it is Yoh had up his sleeve he obviously wasn't telling. Hao would have to go along with his little game and so he let Yoh tug him down the hallway.

It amazed Hao how Yoh could still retain these childish tendencies. It wasn't as though Yoh were naive or ignorant, he was fully aware of the way the world worked and the atrocities that were committed every day. Yoh saw his slight puzzled frown and stopped.

"Aniki, what's wrong?" He asked. Hao blinked, coming out of his private thoughts. For a moment he considered brushing off Yoh's question, but decided the only way to answer his question was to ask Yoh himself. It wasn't as though Yoh would be offended by it, he wasn't offended by much, especially when it came to Hao.

"Well Yoh, I was wondering about you actually." Yoh tilted his head at him and Hao explained what he had just observed. Yoh's ears flicked once and then a thoughtful smile crossed his face.

"What you see in me is called optimism." Yoh explained gently. He was more serious than Hao had ever seen him. Hao was realizing more and more that there were many layers to Yoh, and discovering each one was like discovering an exciting, strange and beautiful new world. "It's a heartfelt assurance on one's part that everything will work out in the end."

"Do you really believe that?" Hao asked, sceptical. Yoh quietly regarded him, seeing the years of suffering clear in his face, knowing that a happy ending seemed too much like fantasy still for his hardened brother.

"Yes, I do." Yoh said. "And I think I am justified. Look how much we've accomplished here and now. A few months ago the rebellion was just a rumour of a rumour, and now you can't go anywhere without seeing an article or a story about them. The world is abuzz, and Cat families are beginning to decide where their loyalties really lie."

"It still seems..."

"Like a wish wrapped in a dream?" Yoh's description brought a faint smile to Hao's face and he nodded. "That's why we're working to make it a reality. The only way wishes and dreams come to life is if we make them, understand?" Hao sighed softly.

"Ok, I will admit that what we've done here is amazing-"

"Good, then let's not talk about it anymore right now, we still have your surprise to get to." Yoh grabbed his brother's arm again and practically dragged him down the hallway.

Hao allowed Yoh to lead him to their bedroom. He noted without much surprise that Yoh had neglected to make his bed once again. Yoh let go of him and rummaged around in his dresser drawer, keeping his back to Hao so that he couldn't see what he was doing. All the sudden Yoh turned with a flourish.

"Happy Birthday!" he cried, holding out a plain paper-wrapped package out to Hao with both hands, cupping it as though it were a small and fragile animal. Hao blinked at it, and then his brother in shock.

"It's..my birthday?" He asked, feeling as though he'd been hit in the head with a thunderbolt.

"Our birthday." Yoh corrected, gripping one of Hao's hands and placing the package delicately in it. Hao stared at it, an expression of mixed trepidation and hesitant pleasure on his face.

"But...I didn't get you anything." Hao protested. Yoh shook his head.

"You didn't need to. I figured you wouldn't have remembered your birthday, but here it is. We're seventeen today." Yoh excitedly bounced on his heels. "Open it!" he ordered. Hao hesitated a moment longer and then carefully peeled the paper away.

A box fell into his hand and he opened the lid of it almost cautiously. He reached in and pulled out a rawhide string. Attached to the string was a hoop. In the center of the hoop were bright red threads, delicate-looking, stretched across it like an intricate spider's web. Dangling from the bottom of the hoop were three small golden eagle feathers.

"What is it?" Hao asked, feeling awed by the craftsmanship and delicacy of the work.

"It's a dreamcatcher." Yoh replied. "It's supposed to keep the bad dreams away if you hang it above your head. Do you like it?"

"It's beautiful." Hao whispered. "I love it." Yoh's face split into a joyous grin, pleased that Hao liked his gift. Hao carefully stood on his bed and hung the dreamcatcher from a hook in the ceiling, briefly trailing his hand over the feathers.

"Goldva used to celebrate my birthday with me." He murmured, the memory surfacing from the dim recesses of his mind. "He used to make carvings for me. I had a little box in my room with them in it. Used to take them out and play with them when I had a chance. There was always a story behind each one, and I'd beg Goldva at bedtime to tell me them again and again." A faraway, longing look came over Hao's face at the tale.

"You miss him, don't you?" Yoh asked. Hao exhaled loudly and stepped down from his bed.

"He was the closest thing to a father I ever had." Hao replied. "The only family I'd ever known, until you, that is."

"Maybe we'll find him." Yoh said hopefully.

"He's probably dead by now." Hao replied. "He was an old man." Yoh gently wrapped an arm around his brother's shoulders.

"That doesn't mean that you still can't hope." Yoh was right, there was no reason he couldn't hope. Hadn't he been shown that what he believed impossible could be possible? So, he would hope, and if it turned out that Goldva was gone he could rest in the knowledge that the old man had found his rest.

Wolf: Review plz!


	18. Chapter 18

Wolf: I own nothing!

"**Leopard-speech"**

"**Today's the day, today's the day." **Hao lifted his head off the bed in time for Yoh to jump off his own and pounce on him. The air left his lungs in a whoosh and he pushed his ecstatic brother off of him so that he can actually breathe.

"**Calm down otouto, you nearly killed me."** Hao said, sitting up and dumping his brother onto the floor. Yoh, however, could not be calmed down and rushed around like a whirling dervish.

"**Get up aniki, we need to say goodbye to everyone before we go." **Hao had to smile; Yoh's excitement was certainly contagious, and justified. Today they were going to join the Leopards, to learn from them. So, why not get a little excited?

"**Alright, want to say goodbye to the girls first?" **Hao asked. Yoh nodded rapidly and began to change out of his bedclothes so fast he got tangled in them and fell to the ground. Hao chuckled and got out of the bed. He carefully untangled Yoh from his clothes.

"**Thanks, aniki." **Yoh said breathlessly. **"Come on, let's go." **The two of them hurriedly pulled on clean clothes and grabbed the travelling packs each had put together the night before. Yoh waited by the door as Hao delicately took his dreamcatcher off its hook and, wrapping it in a soft cloth, placed it inside his pack.

"**Alright, ready to go." **The two of them trekked through the empty halls of the base, boot heels ringing off the floor with an eerie echo that was not present during the day when the halls were full. Both were glad when they came to the valley, because with or without people in it, it still felt right. The sun was just peeking over the horizon, shading the sky purple and pink.

The twins journeyed over to the barn, where Cho and Kochi spent their nights sleeping curled around each other. Hao and Yoh went inside. Hao gently rubbed Kochi's scales just above her eye. The dragon emitted a hum and stretched out, turning over onto her back. Cho let out a sleepy protesting squeak and nuzzled closer.

Yoh laughed and scratched under Cho's chin. "Wake up Cho." He whispered. "Wakey, wakey." Cho yawned and blinked open one yellow eye. Both eyes opened and she sat up on her haunches when she saw who it was. Happily chirping, she rubbed her face against him. Kochi by this point had also woken up and gently head-butted Hao affectionately.

"That's a good girl." Hao crooned, stroking Kochi's head. "Now, you be good, you hear me?" Kochi tilted her head at him and whistled inquiringly. "We're going to be leaving for a little while, and you can't come." The dragons seemed to understand and lowering their heads they gave their Chosen low, mournful hoots.

"It's ok, Cho." Yoh soothed. "I promise, we'll be back, ok?" Cho chirruped and rubbed against him. The twins patted their dragons one last time and then said goodbye. When they got back outside the barn again the sun had risen far enough to bathe the valley in a golden light and glimmer off the wings of the young Hawk striding towards them.

"Morning, Lyserg." Yoh called. "We were just about to come see you." Lyserg shook his head as he drew close to them.

"I still can't believe you two are leaving." He said glumly.

"We'll be back." Hao replied confidently. "And when we do, I want you to show me how much you've progressed while we've been gone. So, that means no slacking, from you or Silva." Lyserg giggled and nodded, but became sober again.

"You guys are my best friends, you know that?" He said.

"We know it, Lyserg." Yoh replied kindly. "And we also know that you're going to be just fine without us here. Now, it's time for us to say goodbye." Lyserg abruptly moved forward and hugged both the twins awkwardly.

"We'll be back before you know it." Hao declared as he pulled out of the embrace. He and Yoh waved goodbye as they headed back inside.

"You two ready to go?" Silva asked, folding his arms over his chest.

"Ready as we'll ever be." Yoh replied with a nervous laugh. Now that it was time to go he was feeling a little jittery. Hao clapped a hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently, reassuringly. Yoh gratefully smiled at him as Silva took them onto the transport.

"**You two need to be on your best behaviour when you're with the Leopards."** Silva said above the clank and rattle of the transport as it chugged along. **"We can't afford anything to jeopardize our alliance with them."**

"**Don't you worry about us, Silva."** Hao replied. **"We'll be as good as gold."**

"**I have little doubt about that." **Silva smiled fondly at the twins. He then turned his attention back to the dimness ahead of them on the track, never for a moment letting down his guard, even in a place that was supposed to be safe.

Yoh thought back to the last time they had made this journey together. How far Hao had come in that time between, back then he was every inch the hardened, battle-scarred fighter. But now, now there was something in him, something that had gone missing in the Pits. Yoh couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"**What is it, otouto?"** Yoh was startled out of his thoughts by Hao's voice. He looked up to find Hao peering into his face with a faint smile. **"You were far away, Yoh."**

"**I was just thinking about the last time we travelled this way." **Hao nodded in understanding. **"I was thinking about how you seem to have gained something in the time between, but I can't quite put into words what it is."**

"**Hope." **Hao replied immediately. **"That's what I've found. A hope that tomorrow may be better, and that my life wasn't just in the Pits." **

"**That's it." **Yoh sighed happily. **"Hope." **

As they were speaking the transport came to a jittering halt in front of the rock face. Both Hao and Yoh pulled off their jackets and stashed them in their packs, knowing the heat that awaited them outside.

The jungle was every bit as hot, every bit as noisy, and every bit as vibrant as they remembered. The burden of the packs on their backs meant that they were sweating in moments. They cautiously trudged down the path, keeping their eyes out for the Leopards.

Suddenly Yoh gasped and Hao whirled to see what was wrong. The Leopards had appeared, and as he watched more of them seemed to melt out of the jungle, like ghosts. Silva greeted them. The little oracle, Opacho, came forward.

"**None of your things are needed here." **She said, indicating their packs. **"You will live as one of us, entirely."**

"**Of course." **Yoh replied and pulled off his pack. Silva took it. Hao slid the straps off his back reluctantly. Before handing it to Silva he opened it and took out the dreamcatcher to look at it one last time.

"**What is that?" **Opacho asked.

"**It is a dreamcatcher, it keeps away nightmares." **Opacho blinked and held out her hands for it. Hao hesitated and then handed it to her. She delicately turned it about in her tiny hands. Finally she sighed and handed it back to him. **"It has power." **She commented. **"You may keep it with you, if you wish." **

Hao bowed his head in thanks and held onto the intricate creation. Silva was then told that he could leave and the twins were left alone with the Leopards. Immediately the tribe silently set out deeper into the jungle, headed for their village.

"**Can you climb?" **One of the warriors dressed only in a loincloth taunted Hao as they came to the treehouses. This warrior was about six foot tall, bald-headed, sleek and muscular with black Leopard parts. His eyes were a startling yellow and the pupils slitted like a four-legged cat's. By the way the other warriors acted around him the twins surmised that he was a big-shot.

In answer Hao simply leapt up onto a low branch and easily scaled the tree, sitting down on a branch and raising an eyebrow at his spectators. The warrior huffed and leapt up into the trees, disappearing into one of the little treehouses. They were shaped like little cocoons, woven with whippy, slender braches, and looked only big enough to lie down in. They dangled off the branches they were attached to by sturdy vines.

"**That was , he is our greatest warrior." **Opacho explained as Yoh scrambled up the tree to sit next to his brother. **"He will be one of your teachers. As will I." **She stood up and flicked her tail in a beckoning gesture. The twins followed after her, learning their balance on the trees quickly.

Opacho led them to a small treehouse, newly made by the smell of it. **"This is your new home. Inside are the clothes that you must wear while with us. The ones you are wearing will be burned." **

The twins nodded and went inside. The cocoon swayed slightly under their weight. Yoh threw his hands out to steady himself on the walls, looking uneasy. Hao simply planted his feet and swayed with the structure, finding his feet.

Upon the curved floor was an animal skin, presumably for sleeping upon. Lying neatly on top was a pair of dark brown loincloths. Hao and Yoh looked at each other with amusement and mild nervousness and then pulled their sweaty clothes off and put on the loincloths.

Immediately their bodies felt cooler, no longer bogged down by the layers of clothing they normally wore. Hao was still ill at ease with the loincloth. It showed too much of his scars for his comfort. Yoh saw him looking down at himself with a slightly nauseated look and gently squeezed his shoulder.

"**I've seen the warriors hear with scars. They wear them proudly." **Yoh said.

"**They got there's doing things they could be proud of. I didn't." **Hao replied. Yoh shrugged.

"**The scars are less strange to them than a Dog in their midst I think." **Hao had to smile at this and nodded in agreement. Before they left their cocoon again Hao tied his dreamcatcher to one of the branches that made up the curved ceiling.

The Leopards swarmed around them when they touched down on the ground, carrying their bundles of clothes. Unlike last time, Hao allowed the young Leopards that eyed him to touch his scars wonderingly as he made his way to the fire blazing in the middle of the tree-ringed clearing.

Opacho stood by the fire and gestured for them to throw the clothes in. As they did a great howling cheer went up from the Leopards.

"**Now your old life is behind you. You will not speak of it. It is as if it never existed." **Opacho explained, dark eyes shining. **"While you are here you are Leopard and nothing else. We will teach you like warrior apprentices and when the time is right you will be initiated as warriors."**

"**We understand." **Hao told her. Opacho smiled and clapped her hands.

"**Now, we must celebrate the arrival of new members of our tribe!"**

%&%&%&%

The Leopards celebrated late into the day, and the night. The twins were daubed with paint on their bodies. They were told that only when they were true warriors would they receive paint on their faces. An improvisation of the tribe's naming ceremony for babes took place.

The naming ceremony involved the pricking of the skin on their hands to draw blood and the joining of their hands with the rest of the tribe, a symbol of the bond the tribe had with their members. The twins' names were then shouted out by the tribe and they were carried above the heads of their new tribe-mates.

Then there was dancing, feasting and storytelling. Yoh and Hao particularly liked the stories of the wily Anansi, the spider-Cat that played tricks on the gods and helped the people of the jungle. All too soon it was time for bed.

The fire was doused and the twins made their way back to their cocoon by the light of the moon shining through the trees. Exhausted, they barely noticed the sway of their house as they stepped inside. The hides on the floor were soft and the slight movement of the cocoon in the breeze soon lulled them into a dream-filled sleep.

Wolf: Review plz!


	19. Chapter 19

Wolf: I own nothing!

"**Get up! Get up younglings!" **Yoh and Hao awoke to the sound of Thahiti's deep voice bellowing into their cocoon. Hao lifted his head and tried to get up, but was impeded by Yoh's body half-draped over him.

"**Yoh, come on. It's time to get up."** Yoh grumbled but sat up. The two of them carefully stood and stepped out of the cocoon. Thahiti tapped his foot impatiently at them, gold eyes narrowed in irritation.

"**Come on soft-foots, let's go." **He growled. **"We are going to forage for breakfast, and I will teach you what is good to eat, and not in this jungle." **He tossed each of them a short spear and padded away through the treetops. Hao and Yoh looked at each other and shrugged.

They kept up easily with the fleet-footed Leopard. Their bare feet though suffered. Yoh's were worse, because Hao still had hard soles to his feet from the Pits. Yoh however had hardly ever walked around in bare feet and soon the pads were aching and blistered.

Thahiti called a halt and then jumped down through the trees to the ground. Hao and Yoh followed a little more cautiously. Thahiti grunted when they landed on the ground. He picked up a twisted, red flowered plant that was looped around the base of one of the trees.

"**This we call Gods-bane."** Thahiti explained. **"It gives us visions. If you succeed in becoming a warrior you will use this in the ceremony." **Thahiti then walked on, ears flicking as he strode through the dense vegetation. **"There is much to be wary of in this jungle, even for a warrior, so be on your toes, soft-foots." **

"**So, that's our new nickname is it?"** Hao murmured as they trekked silently through the jungle. Thahiti suddenly appeared directly in their faces. The twins were stunned, they hadn't even heard him move.

"**You are too noisy. Leopards must be like shadows, unseen, unheard." **Thahiti growled at them. **"Leopards learn this from their births. Do you really believe you can learn?"**

"**We have had to learn things very quickly. Like how to fight for our lives. We are up to this." **Hao countered hotly, holding out his arms so that Thahiti could see the scars better. Thahiti snorted, but nodded.

"**You have fire, good. You are a fighter, I can see that. But that does not make you a warrior, not yet." **Thahiti then turned without a word and plunged back into the vegetation. The twins shrugged at each other and followed. It seemed Thahiti preferred to keep moving.

The twins learned what fruits they could eat in the jungle from Thahiti that day. And, as they were heading back to the village they got to witness Thahiti bring down a small boar. The animal did not even see the Leopard until he was upon it, so silent and invisible he was.

"**When you learn to move without sound, you will be taught to become invisible." **Thahiti said, hauling the boar carcass over one shoulder. **"Make your steps as light as air, and pay mind to your surroundings. Do not brush the leaves the wrong way, move with them and you will not make a sound as you pass." **

"**Is that it?"** Hao demanded. **"You will not teach us more?"**

"**The jungle will teach you better." **Thahiti replied. **"I will accompany you through the jungle when you forage, or hunt, but I will teach no more." **He seemed to think a moment. **"I will give advice, when necessary, but the best way to learn is practice." **

"**I believe that too." **Thahiti halted at looked at Hao in mild surprise.

"**You are a teacher?"**

"**I teach fighting." **Hao replied. **"It's the one thing I know how to do extremely well."**

"**Ahh, you and I will have to pit our skills against each other some time." **Thahiti chuckled, showing a rare smile. **"Don't worry, I'll go easy on you."**

"**Ah, no, it will be I that will be going easy on you, teacher." **Hao replied in a tone of utmost respect. Thahiti chuckled again and headed into the village. The other tribe members were gathering already and a glad cry went up at the sight of Thahiti and the twins.

Some of the other warriors had managed to poach game as well, and below the trees they were setting up fires to roast their bounty. Young ones eagerly helped out, finding fallen branches in the undergrowth and offering to turn the spit.

"**You will help me with my kill." **Thahiti said as one of the young ones carried sticks over to him. **"I will teach you how to dress a kill, and make the proper offerings to the unnamed gods." **

Skinning and gutting the kill was a messy business and carried out away from the meeting clearing. Thahiti led them to a smaller clearing whose floor was so stained by blood that the ground was maroon in colour. Hao disliked the smell, it reminded him too much of the Pits.

"**What is wrong?" **Thahiti asked, seeing Hao snarl unconsciously.

"**Oh, nothing. This place just reminds me too much of the awful place I used to have to fight in." **

"**You will get used to it." **Thahiti grunted. **"Now, watch." **

The hide of the boar was laid over a branch to dry out and await tanning later. The meat was carefully flayed from the bones, not an ounce wasted. The bones were collected in a pile to be used to create tools. Most of the organs would be used for breakfast, the meat left to dry out for later. In the end Thahiti took the stomach and the intestines and ceremoniously laid them in the river flowing nearby, offerings to the gods.

"**Now, we go eat." **He said, picking up the basket of organs to be cooked and walking back to the clearing.

Breakfast was mostly fruit and plants, with smaller portions of organ meat thrown in. Yoh and Hao sat next to Opacho at her request. Several times Hao and Yoh had young ones pull at their tails and ears in their curiosity. Hao tolerated this for the most part, but soon had enough and snarled at the grinning Leopards. They backed off easily, the scarred Dog was scary when he was mad.

"**They merely are curious." **Opacho said in response to Hao's reaction to the young ones' teasing.

"**That does not mean I should allow my tail and ears to be tugged from my head." **Hao replied. **"You have been quiet today, Yoh."**

"**I have been listening, to learn. One cannot listen and speak at the same time." **Yoh answered.

"**A wise decision." **Opacho remarked. **"After breakfast I will be taking over your tutelage. I need to teach you our culture." **

"**As you wish."** Yoh replied with a nod of his head. He inspected the bright red, fist-sized, spiky fruit in his hand. Watching the other Leopards he took a bone knife and peeled the tough skin away to reveal a bright green inside. He scooped some of the soft meat out with his fingers and tasted it. Instantly his face lit up.

"**It tastes like a mixture of oranges and strawberry." **He exclaimed to his brother. Hao chuckled and held out a piece of the long, orange and blue fruit he was eating.

"**Try this." **He replied. Yoh took it and popped it in his mouth. A happy expression crossed his face.

"**Sweet." **He grinned and reached for another piece. **"Opacho, do you eat like this all the time."**

"**The jungle provides." **Opacho replied. **"It never grudges us of what we need, so long as we show it respect."**

"**Well, it certainly has my respect." **Yoh quipped and gulped down more fruit.

When breakfast was done the twins followed Opacho to a large treehouse situated in the branches of the largest tree ringing the clearing. Different than the cocoons, this house was actually nestled in the branches, supported by them.

"**This is the Seer's workplace." **Opacho explained, pulling back the rawhide strings woven with bright feathers shading the doorway. **"This is my place, where I will teach you." **

"**We are ready to learn." **Yoh said, sitting down on the floor with his legs tucked under him. Hao did the same. Opacho sat down, crossing her little legs in front of her and wrapping her tail around them.

"**Today I will teach you of our origins." **She said. Reaching out one hand she gently lit a candle and let the sweet scent permeate the room before continuing. **"The smoke will help take you back, to the time before our people." **Opacho said. Indeed it seemed like the twins had entered some other place, Opacho's voice seemed to come from all around them. They sat back, and listened...

_**Long ago, when the world was not yet formed there were only the gods. The gods were always there, and always will be there. They were lonely however, and tired of the emptiness, and so they banded together to create new things in the world.**_

_**One created light, another went on to tame the light and make it into the sun, the stars and the moon. One created earth, and another shaped it into mountain and valleys. Creation went much the same way for all, one god making, another improving upon what the first had done.**_

_**In this beginning the gods also created the animals of the earth. The fish, the birds, the boar, and all the creatures of the earth, all were created in those early days. The only problem with these creations is they were dumb. **_

_**They had no minds. They knew nothing of creativity or inventiveness, only instinct. The gods were saddened because these creatures could never fully comprehend the gifts that the gods would give them. **_

_**And so they set out upon the earth to look for the most clever of the creatures, in order to give them further intelligence. While wandering the earth some gods found dogs, others found cats, and still more found the birds of the air. **_

_**The gods breathed on these creatures and instantly their eyes became alive with intelligence. They yipped and yowled and screeched, but none could make sounds like the gods did so that they could communicate. **_

_**The gods realized this and reshaped their faces, to help them speak in words. Next the intelligent creatures tried to use their new skills to make tools, but their paws were too unwieldy. The gods took pity and gave them hands, and an upright bearing in order to be able to carry these tools. The gods took away the fur and feathers over most of their creations' bodies when they saw that the creatures did not work as hard to use their gifts when they could keep warm without covering up.**_

_**The creatures soon looked little like their animal forms. Soon each only had a small reminder of what they had been before. The new intelligent beings looked around at their world and gave praise to the gods for their wisdom in giving them cleverness. **_

_**Some of the new ones though, scoffed, saying they were better than the gods now. The gods grew angry and took away their gifts from those that scorned them. That is why we still have animal forms of ourselves in the world. **_

_**The remaining new ones scattered about the globe, finding the places where their abilities best worked for them. Our people searched high and low. The open plains were no good, our prey could see our spots before we could sneak. The gods saw our plight and whispered to us of a place where we could blend into the shadows of the trees and leap from treetop to treetop. That place was here, and ever since the beginning we have stayed here, and here we will stay until the end. **_

Wolf: Review plz!__


	20. Chapter 20

Wolf: I own nothing!

It had been four months since the twins had joined the Leopards, and their lives before seemed almost like a dream. They were fitter than they had ever been, able to leap through the trees with ease and speed. The soles of their feet had hardened so that their activities no longer pained them. Their bodies had browned deeply, so that they looked like natives.

Those people that came through the jungles thought that they were actual natives, and reacted in surprise in the moments that Yoh and Hao chose to speak to them in their own tongue. They did that rarely now, choosing to communicate as a Leopard, to do all things as the Leopards did.

Both kept their hair tied back from their faces with leather thongs and feathers from kills adorned their hair. They carried their short spears everywhere, keeping them in a sling upon their backs. Yoh learned to use his tail as an extra limb and Hao learned to hear a bird call from nearly half a mile away.

Invisibility, they found, was all about belief in one's ability. If one had the mindset that one was invisible, it was possible to actually become invisible. It took some time for the twins to understand this, but now they could follow a visitor to their jungle through the paths without him once seeing them. Their constant practice, with Thahiti and in their spare time, was to thank for their quick learning.

Thahiti was impressed by their progress and had declared that they were to be named warriors at the next full moon. Yoh and Hao were somewhat saddened by this, because they knew that after that they would be going back to the base. They were glad too; they would be seeing their friends again.

"**Opacho, why did you tell us before that our destiny could not be achieved without each other?" **Yoh asked this question one night as Opacho was showing the twins the stars and telling them the stories behind the constellations in the sky.

"**In order to tell you that, I must explain some things." **The little oracle replied. **"Have you ever seen the mountains that spew fiery rock?"**

"**No, but I've heard of them." **Yoh replied.

"**I have seen them only in visions. Hao, you are like that mountain of fiery rock. Some of the time contained, but you can also be dangerous, destructive. Yoh is like the great sea, slow to anger, but terrible to behold when that anger is aroused. When the sea and the fiery mountain meet, they create something new, land. Much is the same with you two. Apart you simply exist, together you can create, and you need each other to balance the other." **

"**I think I understand." **Hao said.

"**Your warrior ceremony is coming up." **Opacho said with a smile. **"Are you excited?" **

"**Of course!" **Yoh yelped happily. A sleepy yowl from the cocoons below made him flinch and grin apologetically. Opacho giggled.

"**I think you two should go to bed before you wake the whole tribe up." **

"**Of course." **Hao said, getting to his feet and helping Yoh up. **"Pleasant dreams."**

"**Pleasant dreams."**

%&%&%&%

"**You two were possibly the best students I've ever had, do you know that?" **Thahiti asked as he daubed the twins' bodies with warrior paint. **"No one has ever gone after this with so much dedication."**

"**What can we say, we wanted to learn." **Hao shrugged. Thahiti laughed.

"**Before you leave, we still need to have that fight you promised me."**

"**Oh, I thought you'd forgotten about that, or were simply too intimidated." **Hao joked. Thahiti chuckled again and then dipped his finger in red paint and drew lines over Hao's face.

The twins' faces had two horizontal lines on both cheeks, and a long line going from their temple to their nose. Bands of colour circled their arms and whorls decorated their chests. Hao's body was painted red, yellow and orange, while Yoh was painted blue, purple and green; symbolism from Opacho.

"**Nervous?" **Hao whispered, watching his brother fidget as they waited for the ceremony to start.

"**A little bit." **Yoh admitted with a wan smile. Hao reached over to rub his brother's head. Yoh let out a purring sound of contentment.

"**We are ready to go." **Thahiti said and the twins filed out and down to the jungle floor, where a bonfire blazed.

"**Tonight we welcome our new warriors!" **Opacho cried. A roar of approval went up as the twins stepped into the firelight. **"And now, to become warriors, true Leopards, they will take a dream journey and be reborn! If the gods do not judge them to be worthy as warriors, they will not come back from their journey at all."**

Opacho took a flaming branch from the fire and set a small pot filled with the bright red flowers that would take them through their dreams ablaze. When all that remained was purplish smoke she stepped over to where the twins waited on their knees.

"**Breathe in deep." **She instructed. The twins bowed their heads and inhaled deeply, the spicy scent filling their nostrils. Almost immediately they felt the effects as the world seemed to drop away from them and they were lifted up and up and up...

_Over the clouds, into the night sky they flew. All was darkness until...light! As they watched the world came into being before their eyes. Stars blazed into being and the moon shot past them to come into orbit over the new world. And then they were falling..._

_Running, running... a sleek black and tan dog alongside with a great black cat, paws smacking the ground as they hunted in the new and bright world. And then...changing, face falling flat, fur falling off, paws becoming long and dexterous. _

_These new creatures stood tall on new legs and praised the gods for their new lives. And then walking, following the gods. Coming...coming to the jungle, becoming...becoming warriors of the jungle._

_Darkness and in the darkness a great heartbeat, and the heartbeat of an Other. The Other was almost the one and not the one. And then the two were ripped apart, cast into the bright light of the world; two boys living in the world, two different lives until they came together again._

_The vision begins to meld, two views becoming one. Two sets of thought melding together. Yoh Hao Yoh Hao...the line begins to blur as Two become One in mind and spirit. The two spirits rejoiced at the twining, remembering before birth when they had been One, instead of Two, whole instead of just one part. Yoh...Hao...Yoh...Hao..._

%&%&%&%

Dark eyes opened under a canopy of leaves. They lay curled in the fetal position under the Seer's tree, as though they were truly being born again. There was disorientation on both Yoh and Hao's part. They remembered being One, and yet, they were Two.

Silently the two stood up, staring at each other as though seeing for the first time. How strange it was to be able to see the other, instead of looking through their eyes. The feeling of being Two again filled them both with a sense of loss.

'_Yoh...' _Yoh's head jerked and he stared at Hao. The voice had come from his mind, but it wasn't his thoughts.

'_Hao...?' _

'_Yes...'_

'_We were One, but we are Two again.'_

'_Not entirely, it would seem.' _Hao was right. The two of them were linked now, able to hear the other's thoughts. The sound of cheering broke them from their reverie and they looked up to find the entire tribe standing over them, celebrating.

"**The gods have shown favour!" **Opacho cried. Hao and Yoh stood up shakily. **"Our new warriors, Hao and Yoh!" **

"**Hao! Yoh! Hao! Yoh!" **The tribe chanted, grasping their new warriors and lifting them up onto shoulders. Now the real celebration would begin, a feast and dancing that would last well into the night.

%&%&%&%

"**Come on now, Hao, it's time for our match." **Thahiti said with a feral grin. Hao grinned back at him. The sight was savage with his face painted like a warrior. Yoh padded over to the side of the clearing to watch. He could feel Hao's anticipation for the match; Hao did like to fight, as long as it was on his terms.

"**Well then, let's go." **Hao replied. **"Unless you're getting cold feet." **Hao slid into a crouch, eye narrowing as he watched Thahiti. A crowd was assembling up in the branches of the trees and around the clearing, eager was everyone to see a demonstration of Hao's skill.

Thahiti circled Hao, huffing softly, looking for an opening. Neither had weapons, this was strictly hand-to-hand combat. Hao kept Thahiti in his sights, waiting. Thahiti smirked and then rushed Hao.

Hao roared and met the charge head-on, planting his feet deep and turning his shoulder to Thahiti's attack. Muscle bulged as the two forces met and held. Thahiti attempted to drive Hao back, but Hao was planted too firmly.

Hao moved them, sidestepping so that Thahiti's momentum carried him past. Hao kicked him lightly in the back, a warning of sorts. Thahiti turned and grinned savagely. **"You're holding back." **He accused.

"**I'd rather not hurt you, my friend." **Hao replied as they circled each other once more. Thahiti snorted and leapt into the air, aiming a kick at Hao's head. Hao grabbed his leg and threw him. Thahiti found his feet and rushed Hao, hissing.

Hao blocked his blows and countered with a hard punch to the stomach, taking care to check his blow so that he did not break bone. Thahiti reeled back but came at Hao again, trying to grab his arm. Hao batted his hand away and kicked his legs out from under him. Thahiti tried to get back to his feet but Hao was on him and pinned him to the ground, one arm across his throat.

"**Do you yield?"** He asked.

"**I yield." **Thahiti conceded, panting. The crowd roared their approval. Hao helped Thahiti back to his feet. **"Where on earth did you learn to fight like that?"**

"**I had to learn, or die." **Hao explained. **"I was a Pit fighter."** Thahiti only cocked his head at him; he had no idea what a Pit fighter was. Hao smiled faintly and explained. **"I was forced to fight other people, or animals in order to survive. I spent eight years of my life doing that." **Thahiti was visibly shocked.

"**Well, it's little wonder you are so good, and so scarred." **He said simply. Hao laughed and nodded. A small hubbub at the edge of the clearing drew their attention. The twins watched in mingled dismay and excitement as Silva stepped into the valley. Hao raced into the trees, Yoh following, to get his dreamcatcher.

"**So, where are Yoh and Hao?" **Silva was asking as they raced back.

"**Here we are!" **Yoh cried as they jumped down onto the clearing floor. Silva's eyes widened at the sight of the barely clad, dark-skinned, painted boys that stood in front of him. Yoh and Hao were just as surprised; Silva seemed to have shrunk! Or, rather, they seemed to have grown out here in the jungle.

"**Well, I see they've made proper Leopards out of you. It's time to go home though, I'm afraid." **Silva said gently. The Leopards softly murmured and came forward, touching their new tribe members, saying goodbye. Thahiti took a silvery feather off his spear carrier and placed it in Hao's hair.

"**Go well." **He said simply and then melted into the jungle. Opacho hugged them both and waved as they walked with Silva away. As they trekked through the jungle her little voice called out to them

"**No matter where you are, remember, you are Leopards, forever!"**

Wolf: Review plz!


	21. Chapter 21

Wolf: I own nothing.

Yoh and Hao were quiet for most of the journey back. Silva respected this, taking the time to reconcile himself with the twins' changes. They were muscular, tough and brown-skinned with spears on their backs, paint on their bodies and feathers adorning their hair. Anyone who didn't know them would have thought that they were savages, never having set foot in the civilized world.

When they came to the rock face, the opening of the door startled the twins momentarily, enough so that Yoh let out a hiss and Hao a low growl. When they realized what they'd done they felt extremely foolish. Silva, however, only chuckled and ushered them inside.

Used to the heat of the jungle, the cool air in the tunnel felt positively frigid to the twins. Goosebumps popped up all over and they started to shiver slightly. Silva led them into the transport and handed the two of them blankets, which Yoh and Hao immediately wrapped around themselves.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it again." Silva assured them as he got the transport going. Hao and Yoh held on tightly, the movement strange after all these months.

"Not anytime soon, I think." The words seemed difficult to say for Hao. The words were unfamiliar and unwieldy, the language no longer familiar to the two of them. Those months in the jungle had turned their own language into foreign, while the Leopard-speech felt right.

"Perhaps you should practice talking, so that you remember how." Silva suggested.

"Good idea." Yoh replied, tripping over the syllables slightly. "It would be pretty undignified to go in there and not be able to talk."

"I suppose it would be." Silva smiled. "And I think there are some people there that you're really going to want to talk to."

"Of course!" Yoh yelped happily. "Lyserg, and Amidamaru and Faust..." He trailed off as Silva chuckled.

"I don't think he means all those people, do you Silva?" Hao asked, raising an eyebrow at the grinning Coyote.

"Oh, you'll just have to wait and see." Then Silva fell silent, watching the dark tunnel ahead.

"Have we made any progress with the laser weapons?" Hao asked after a time, finally remembering what they had been working on with the Avians.

"Oh yes, we're getting very close." Silva nodded, not glancing away from the darkness. "A month or two more and we should be able to manufacture weapons enough for the whole base and even the outposts." Silva's excitement was palpable in the way his tail swung back and forth and his ears twitched erratically.

"Seems that it is going very well then." Hao mused softly. Silva laughed softly and nodded. Soon they came to the end of the tunnel. Yoh and Hao stretched legs that had fallen asleep in the transport while Silva hurriedly opened the door.

"You two coming or what?" Silva asked with a faint smirk. The twins mock-growled at him and followed him inside. The air inside the base was warmer than in the tunnel, but still cooler than what the twins were now used to. Even so they left the blankets in the transport, continuing along in their bare feet and loincloths.

The people that saw them watched them with a mixture of confusion and alarm. Hao and Yoh realized that no one recognised them as they were now. They took a good look at each other, comprehending just how much they had changed in those four months in the jungle.

All at once Hao stopped, slamming on the brakes so hard it was like he'd stopped just short of slamming into a wall. Yoh noticed after a couple steps that Hao wasn't with him and looked back, puzzled. Hao stared past him with a stunned expression.

"Hao, what's wrong?" Yoh asked in concern. Hao's mouth worked but nothing came out. Perplexed Yoh followed Hao's gaze to the end of the hall, where a small, old man was talking with one of the rebels. The old man had long grey hair and grey Coyote parts. One ear was tattered and torn and he held an ornately carved walking staff in his gnarled old hands.

"Goldva." Hao whispered, and Yoh looked back. Hao's face seemed to get younger, more open as he watched. The hard years in the Pits fell away until the boy standing in front of him looked like the little boy that had lived with Goldva in a simpler, happier time.

Hao's feet carried him forward, though his mind felt numb and fuzzy. Goldva looked up at the footsteps and recoiled in alarm at the sight of the savage-looking Dog approaching him. He lifted his staff, a warning to stay back.

"Goldva." Goldva paused, lowering his staff slightly. The voice seemed familiar to him, it tugged at his memories. He squinted at Hao, peering closer. He took in the dark hair and the even darker eyes. Mentally he took away the deep tan and the paint and all the sudden his eyes widened.

"Hao? Hao, is that you?" Goldva gasped. Hao smiled and got down on his knees, hugging the old Coyote.

"Yeah, it's me old man." Hao said huskily.

"By all the unnamed gods!" Goldva cried, pulling back to stare at Hao once more. "I thought for sure you'd been taken to the Pits, and that you'd died."

"I was taken to the Pits." Hao answered. "But I did not die. I spent eight years there."

"Eight...years?" Goldva gaped at him. "I didn't think anyone could survive that long! How did you get out?"

Hao beckoned to Yoh. "Thanks to him." Yoh knelt down, bowing his head at Goldva. "Goldva this is my twin brother, Yoh."

"I've heard so much about you." Yoh said eagerly. "Thank you for taking care of my brother all those years." Goldva smiled and chuckled.

"Well, someone had to keep this young rip in line." Goldva ruffled Hao's long hair fondly. "I'm glad he's out of that terrible place, and for that I guess I have you to thank." Yoh blushed and folded his ears back in embarrassment. Goldva shook his head, staring at Hao again. "Look how much you've grown." He said warmly.

"I have so many things to tell you." Hao said, standing up. He hesitated and turned to Yoh. "Yoh, do you mind if Goldva and I-"

"No, of course not, go ahead. You two have catching up to do." Yoh said, smiling warmly. "I'll say hello to the girls for both of us, okay?" Hao nodded and smiled, and then carried on down the hallway, Goldva limping beside him.

Yoh watched them go and then headed to his room. On the way there he passed by the Control Room and paused as a familiar voice floated out to him.

"I don't understand why I cannot stay here, Amidamaru." Startled, Yoh peeked in to find Amidamaru speaking with...his mother?

"Keiko, this place is for the fighting force of the rebellion, it's too dangerous for you here." Amidamaru said, folding his arms and staring down at his former employer.

"But, I want to see Yoh." Keiko persisted, staring pleadingly at Amidamaru. "Where is he?"

"I'm here." Keiko turned at the soft voice and took a step back in alarm. Walking up to her was a tall, dark-skinned young man, dressed and painted as a jungle native. The savage-looking boy came right up to her, stared her right in the face and smiled.

"Kaa-san." He whispered happily and Keiko's eyes widened at the sound of her son's voice. She gasped and cupped Yoh's face in her hands.

"Yoh, my son." She cried, tears coming to her eyes. "Look at you! You've grown." It was true, Yoh had grown almost as tall as her. Yoh gently placed his big hands over his mother's smaller ones.

"In more ways than one." He said quietly. "How did you get here?"

"Amidamaru organized a raid on our slaves last night." Keiko replied. "I begged him to take me with." She said, tears dripping down her face. "Oh, Yoh, I've been so worried about you."

Yoh hugged her tightly. "It's okay, Kaa-san, I'm okay." Keiko nodded and stepped back a little, wiping her eyes.

"You startled me a little." She admitted. "I didn't recognise you, you look so..."

"Wild?" Yoh laughed as his mother nodded. He held out a hand to her. "Come on and I'll tell you what happened..."

%&%&%&%

"You're limping." Hao commented as he and Goldva headed out to the valley. Goldva grunted in affirmation. "What happened to your leg?"

"It happened when your buddies here came to free all the slaves on the plantation. I decided to help with keeping back the overseers. I'd forgotten that I'm no longer as young, or as fast, as I used to be." He chuckled ruefully.

"You're staying here though?" Hao asked, looking mildly worried. Goldva swatted him over the head with his staff.

"Just because I'm old doesn't mean I'm useless." He growled irritably. "I can fight as well as anyone else here, I just have to be a little more careful about how I fight."

"Well, maybe I can help with that." Hao replied. "I'm sort of a trainer around here, I teach people to fight."

"Putting your pit experiences to good use?" Hao nodded. "Good boy. Now, how come you look so...wild?"

"Oh that." Hao looked down at his barely clothed, painted body. "Yoh and I were living with the Leopard tribe in the south for the last four months."

"Ahh, so, you are a tribesman now." Hao nodded solemnly. "I miss those days when my life was governed by the movements of the great herds of the plains." Goldva said wistfully. "Life was simple, and the world was a benevolent place, so long as we respected nature. Now..." He sighed and shook his head.

"I miss it already too." Hao replied softly. "The jungle felt like home, and the war seemed only like a distant dream while I was there." His eyes grew far away. Suddenly he stiffened as a presence brushed his mind.

'_Hao, can you hear me?'_

'_Yes, I can hear you, otouto.'_

'_I have someone I want you to meet, where are you?'_

'_In the valley, with Goldva.'_

'_Okay, I'll come to you.'_

"Hao? Where did you go just now?" Hao looked into Goldva's wizened face, finding a bemused and slightly worried expression on the old Dog's face.

"Sorry, I was speaking with my brother." Goldva blinked. "This may be hard to believe but the warrior ceremony we went through gave us access to each other's minds, and we can speak to each other just by thinking."

"I suppose it is not that unusual, there have always been stories that twins were able to communicate beyond the normal means." Goldva shrugged. "It is possible the ceremony only awakened senses that had long been unused."

"True."

"What did your brother say?"

"He said he had someone he wanted me to meet."

"Who?"

"He didn't say." Goldva chuckled at the annoyed look on Hao's face.

"I guess then we'll just have to wait for him and see."

Wolf: Review plz!


	22. Chapter 22

Wolf: I own nothing!

Hao only had to wait a moment for Yoh to come out of the base. He looked at the woman with him, trying to guess who it was. He saw the way Yoh held her hand, the dark hair, and finally, the dark eyes. He knew in that instant that who was coming to meet him was his mother, the woman who had given him up.

He abruptly stood up and deliberately turned his back as the two of them came up, walking away. He didn't want anything to do with someone that wouldn't even try to keep her own son.

"Hao, Hao wait!" He didn't stop for Yoh's cry. He heard running footsteps and then a hand grabbed his shoulder, spinning around. "Come on Hao, please say hello." Yoh pleaded.

"Say hello?" Hao snarled, swatting Yoh's hand away angrily. "Say hello to the woman that couldn't even keep her own son?"

"Hao, that's not fair, you know that she couldn't keep you."

"She didn't even try!" Hao roared furiously. "I want nothing to do with her at all, do you understand?"

"Hao, do you remember what I told you about fear?" Hao growled impatiently, but nodded anyways, eyes narrowed. "People allow their fear to rule them. Kaa-san allowed her fear of her father to rule her, and allow him to take you from her. In truth, on the birthing bed, it wasn't as though she could stop him anyways. Afterwards, it was fear that she would have me taken away too that prevented her from trying to find you."

Hao said nothing, but his tense body and hard, blank expression told Yoh that he was having none of it. Yoh reached out to cup Hao's face in his hands. Hao's expression did not change, nor did he relax as Yoh stared beseechingly into his eyes.

"Hao, I know this is difficult for you, but Kaa-san has taken a step for the better by coming here. She was terrified to do so, and yet she did. She did so in the hope that she would see me, and you." Yoh paused for a moment. "She never forgot about you." He whispered. "I often wondered as a child why Kaa-san cried herself to sleep most nights, but now I understand."

"So what am I supposed to do? Just forgive her, just like that?" Hao's voice was bitter and lost. To Yoh it seemed like he was having trouble sorting out his tormented emotions and Yoh knew it wasn't a good idea for him to push him right now. "I'm not you Yoh, I've seen too much, done too much to forgive so easily."

"I know, I know." Yoh assured him. "And I'm not asking that. I'm just asking you to show her what kind of man you've grown into."

Hao sighed and his shoulders slumped as he nodded. He slowly made his way over to where his mother waited, rooted to the spot. He saw open fear and naked sorrow in her eyes as she took in his battle-scarred body. He watched, expressionless as tears began to course down her cheeks.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered and lurched forward to encircle her arms around him. Hao stayed tense, unyielding as she embraced him. After a long, uncomfortable moment, she let him go and stared into his hard eyes. "What is your name?"

"Hao." was the short reply.

"Hello Hao, I'm-"

"I know who you are." Hao snapped, anger flickering into his eyes. "If you're looking for forgiveness, you won't find it here." Keiko shook her head slightly.

"How can I expect you to forgive me, when I can't forgive myself?" Her words gave Hao pause and he looked more closely at the woman who had given him life. Deep sorrow clouded the dark eyes and fear and pain had etched premature lines in her pretty face. In a moment of clarity Hao saw the suffering his mother had gone through all these years.

Slowly he reached out a hand and brushed his fingers across her cheek. She inhaled sharply and brought her own hand up to place it over Hao's. "I have to go now, I'm sorry." She said after a moment, backing up. "Amidamaru has arranged for me to live amongst the Avians, he says it will be the most peaceful place for me." She sobbed slightly and hugged Yoh. "Goodbye Yoh, and goodbye...Hao." She gently and hesitantly kissed Hao's forehead. She then turned and headed back into the base.

When she left Hao heaved a great sigh. "What's wrong?" Yoh asked. Hao shook his head from side to side slowly.

"You'd think I'd have learned by now."

"Learned what?" Yoh queried, confused.

"That the world isn't in black and white. That everyone has a reason for doing things, and believing what they do is right, even Cats." Yoh put a hand on Hao's shoulder, comfortingly.

"It's difficult to let go of old prejudices, especially when someone's been treated as you have all your life." Yoh said quietly. "You did well today though." Hao sighed again.

"I still don't think I can forgive her though. Does that make me a bad person?" Yoh looked into his brother's worried eyes.

"No, it doesn't. You've been hurt, and the hurt is going to take time to heal. I don't think anyone can truly forgive until they work past the hurt." Yoh replied. Hao smiled slightly.

"You always know what to say, don't you?" He looked down at himself, as though seeing the paint and loincloth for the same time. "Think we should get changed?"

"Yeah, I think we're scaring the locals a little." Yoh chuckled. Hao laughed too and went over to say goodbye to Goldva for the moment. The two of them then wandered back into the base to find a shower and clothes.

When Yoh turned on the shower he yelped in surprise and shook his head. "You alright, otouto?" Hao asked from the next stall over.

"I'm fine, I just forgot how warm the water was, and how fast it came out." Yoh admitted sheepishly. Hao chuckled and continued with his own shower, not telling Yoh how he'd jumped when the water came down over him.

With twin reluctant sighs they washed away the paint on their bodies, the physical reminders of their time in the jungle flowed down the drain. It felt good though to be able to shower in warm water, and scrub until every inch of dirt was gone.

When they emerged from the showers their skin was scrubbed pink under their tans and they both felt slightly drowsy as a result of the warm water. They quickly dried off and pulled on new clothes. Hao's fingers fumbled somewhat with his belt, and Yoh had some trouble getting his upper body into his shirt.

They looked at each other, no longer able to see the Leopard warrior under the clothes and the lack of paint. But they could still it in each other's eyes. There was still wildness there, a piece of the jungle that would never leave them. They smiled at each other, relieved that the jungle was still with them, even if they had turned back into rebels.

As they exited the showers they were grabbed and pulled into a rib-crushing hug. "You guys are back!" Lyserg yelped happily, looking at them with twinkling green eyes. "That's so great, look at you, you look like a pair of natives with those tans, I almost didn't recognise you."

"Hey, Lyserg." Yoh said. "Can you let go now, I can't really breathe." Lyserg apologised and let go, only to have Yoh bear hug him happily. Hao stood there and simply chuckled.

"You been keeping up with your training?" He asked the young Hawk. Lyserg nodded eagerly, looking ready to burst with excitement.

"That's not all I've been doing." He said breathlessly. "I got to go on a raid!"

"Congratulations!" Yoh yelped. "How'd it go?"

"It went great!" Lyserg crowed, fluffing out his feathers. "I even got to take down an Angel using the skills you taught me." Hao smiled at the newfound confidence that glowed in Lyserg's face.

"I always knew you'd do great." He said approvingly. Lyserg blushed and shifted uncomfortably.

"Now, you have to tell me everything." Lyserg insisted, grabbing each of their arms and tugging them towards the cafeteria.

"I have an idea, why don't we go for a flight and talk then?" Hao suggested. "We haven't seen the girls in months and are eager to fly again." Lyserg nodded happily in agreement and they once again headed out of the base to the valley.

Cho and Kochi were in the barn when they got there. Whistles and peeps permeated the air as they sniffed, nudged and nuzzled against their Chosen. Yoh giggled as Cho rubbed her face against his chest. Kochi hummed contently as Hao scratched behind her ear.

"Come on girls, let's go flying." Hao coaxed, putting on Kochi's equipment. Cho cheeped happily as Yoh did the same, barely able to hold still. As soon as they were outside and perched on their dragons they were airborne. Lyserg screeched delightedly and flapped his own wings, taking off and catching up to them in seconds.

"So, spill!" He demanded as they circled on an updraft. Hao and Yoh related their experiences in the jungle to him. He listened with an awe-struck expression as they told him about hunting, swinging through treetops and the warrior ceremony.

"I can see in your eyes that the jungle has changed you." Lyserg said as they finished. "You have a more dangerous look to you, you seem wilder, untameable. I think people are going to think twice about tangling with you two."

Yoh and Hao chuckled. "We can also disappear, don't forget that. We'll have to demonstrate sometime."

"Just don't be sneaking up and trying to scare me all the time." Lyserg warned. "My reflexes are sharp and I don't want to hurt either of you." Hao laughed again.

"The day you can hurt me is the day I retire as a trainer and let you take over." He joked, eyes dancing merrily. Lyserg joined in his laughter and then dove for the ground as the updraft ended. Ch o and Kochi screeched in delight and followed him, folding their wings to plummet at high speed towards the distant ground.

Twenty feet from the ground the dragons' wings snapped open and they landed with graceful ease. "Bravo!" The boys looked up to see Amidamaru striding towards them across the grass. "That was excellently executed. And welcome back you two."

"Good to be back, sir." Hao said respectfully. "Was there anything you wanted us for?" Amidamaru's face grew grave.

"Yes, you three need to come inside, an emergency meeting has been called." The boys looked at each other with shock and trepidation. An emergency meeting could only mean that something really bad had happened.

"What happened?" Yoh asked quietly. Amidamaru just gave him a worried stare.

"You'll find out soon enough."

Wolf: Review plz!


	23. Chapter 23

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh, Hao and Lyserg followed Amidamaru into the base, each wondering just what the emergency was. When they got to the control room it was already full of all the rebels currently on the base. The babble died away as Amidamaru strode to the center of the room. He regarded the hushed mass of Dogs, Cats and Avians with grave, sorrowful eyes.

"The Angels today have shown just how mad they really are." His deep, sonorous voice echoed off the walls. Not a sound could be heard as the rebels waited for him to continue. "It seems they have finally realized how much of a threat we are, and have taken steps in order to bring us down."

"NEVER!" Someone shouted, and there was an answering roar of affirmation from everyone assembled. Amidamaru held up his hands for silence.

"I know you feel there is nothing they can do to stop us, but listen well." He paused a moment and then continued. "I received a new bulletin today telling the world that the Angels have taken several hundred Dog slaves, women and children included, and are threatening to kill them all if we do not surrender ourselves."

The silence that fell at his words was shocked, horrified. No one could fathom a government that would be so cruel, so heartless as to kill innocents in order to get what they wanted.

"So, what do we do then?" Someone asked in the dead silence. "Surely we do not give ourselves up?"

"No, we will not do that." Amidamaru confirmed firmly. "But, we cannot risk an assault at this time; our weapons are not enough to combat the forces of the Angels." He paused for a moment, letting the murmurs die away once more. "So, what we are going to do is take something precious of theirs, something that they hold in equal value as we hold those lives out there. I am talking about stealing the Angels' little angel."

Amidamaru clicked a button and the image of a young Avian popped up on every screen in the room. Exclamations of surprise and sighs of admiration went through the room at the sight of the uncommonly beautiful young girl. No more than twelve years old, her skin was as white as snow and her hair a silvery cascade down her back. Her wide eyes were rose-coloured and seemed to stare into your very soul.

"We are proposing a kidnap of this young Avian, whom, I have been informed, is named Jeanne. Hopefully this will buy us enough time to finish mass-production of our new laser weapons and bring this war to its close."

A roar of approval resonated through the room at his words. Yoh, Hao and Lyserg were caught up in the excitement and yelled aloud, voicing roars that could have been wild leopards for all that anyone knew. Lyserg jumped and gave them both a reproachful look before letting out his own hunting screech.

"Alright, alright, let's get back down to business." Amidamaru said, holding his hands out for silence once more. "We have a lot to do, and only a little time to do it."

%&%&%&%

Ren Tao stared moodily out into the darkening night as the transport floated along just above the ground, the tip of his black, singly spiked hair brushing against the window as he peered into the dark. Beside him sat the Angels' little angel, the supposed 'gift of the gods'. Whether this was true he did not know, and did not care, all he had to do was guard the little birdie.

His sharp, golden eyes looked across his charge, past the little Dog that was her personal servant, at his partner Bason. The huge, inexpressive man nodded briefly at him before his eyes returned to scanning the empty streets. Neither of them was comfortable in these times, when they were asked to transport the angel to a different location in the empire, but the little brat disliked the closeness of the few hundred slaves that were being kept in the courtyard below.

Ren and Bason could no more abide the sight either, or the soft wails of fear and anguish that drifted up on the open air. So in truth this was the one time they were glad that the angel had demanded they move. Even so, he disliked the streets, too narrow, too easy for someone to ambush them, and in the light of the rebels, one would think that it would be wiser to stay put behind guarded doors.

All the sudden the driver slammed on the brakes, jolting the back seat's occupants forward. "What is going on?" Ren demanded impatiently.

"Someone in the road gesturing for me to stop." The driver said. "Has a hazard sign in his hand." The driver rolled down the window as the man, Silva in disguise, walked up.

"Going to have to find a different route through buddy." He said amiably, trying to create the illusion that nothing was amiss. "Construction all through this part." As he hoped, the two bodyguards got out of the car to make sure that he was legit.

"Can we see your permit?" Bason rumbled. "We received no word that there was to be construction."

"Oh boy, the boss is always forgetting these things." Silva said sheepishly, rummaging in his pockets. "I know I had that paper somewhere in here..." He kept looking in his pockets, scratching one ear. The makeup that made him look like a Cat itched like crazy. He needed to keep them busy though, until they could get Jeanne out.

A female scream behind them made Bason and Ren whirl. They leapt forward at the sight of two masked persons dragging the screaming angel and her little servant out of the car. They were too slow to grab the two as they ran for the alleys on foot.

"Damnit!" Ren roared, and the two bodyguards gave chase, following the abductors into the dark and twisting alleys. They never lost sight of their quarry, though they never came close enough to actually snag them.

Yoh, for it was the twins who had conducted the abduction, half-dragged the still screaming Avian girl through the dirty and shadowed alleyway. Hao half-carried the frightened servant, a young girl with soft, bright, scared pink eyes, and choppy pink hair with soft white poodle (A/N: poodles are actually really cute without the stupid fur cuts) ears poking through. Her white tail was firmly between her legs as she shook with fear.

At the end of the alley they handed their charges off to a waiting Lyserg and Anna. Lyserg and Anna teleported out, while Yoh and Hao stayed back to keep the bodyguards busy until they got the go-ahead signal.

Ren roared with rage, assembling his Kwan Dao in record time as he launched himself at Yoh. Yoh stepped back, into the shadows and vanished. Ren pulled back in time to prevent himself from hitting the wall. He didn't know what had happened; it was almost as if Yoh had become a shadow himself, insubstantial, untouchable.

All the sudden he was slammed in the back. He turned with a hiss, black and brown striped tabby ears folded back in anger. He swung the Kwan Dao; Yoh blocked it with an arm and grabbed it in a one-handed grip, yanking Ren forward before leaping over him and disappearing again.

As Yoh played his cat and mouse game with Ren, Hao was dealing with Bason. Bason lunged and Hao leapt up, slamming one booted foot into his helmeted head, dark grey cat ears folding back as the pain reverberated through the bodyguard's head. He turned, but Hao had vanished. And then he reappeared again, seemingly out of shadow, and yanked Bason's Kwan Dao out of his hand before dashing it to the ground.

Suddenly, the masked assailants paused, and then in front of the bewildered and furious guards, they vanished. Neither could understand; one moment they were standing there, and the next, nothing. Like smoke, they had simply seemed to disperse, in the blink of an eye, except, neither had blinked.

"What does this mean?" Bason asked, catching his breath and stooping to pick up his weapon. Ren panted, leaning against his own, furious eyes fixed on the spot where Yoh had vanished without a trace. Finally he spoke, words angry, and a little afraid.

"It means, Bason, that we will soon be out of a job."

%&%&%&%

Lyserg spared a moment to try to calm his roiling stomach before punching the next teleport as he struggled to hang onto the screaming, fighting Avian girl in his arms. He looked over at Anna, envying the limp state of her charge. They had taken the servant as an act of freeing her. So far, she did not seemed thrilled by the prospect, but once they were in the base, and things were explained, Lyserg was sure she'd come around.

They ended the teleportation about a half a kilometre from the base. It was too risky to try to place a teleport in the mountains, anything could happen to it, and subsequently anyone trying to use it. Anna took out a blindfold and placed it over the shivering Dog's eyes. Lyserg did the same with Jeanne, batting her hands away when she tried to take it off.

"How dare you treat an angel this way?" Jeanne's voice was calm, cold, and emotionless. Lyserg shivered slightly, a little girl should not have a voice like that.

"You're no angel." Anna spat back, yanking her girl upright. "Now shut up before I gag you too."

"The gods will make you suffer for this." Anna only sneered and roughly pushed the Dog servant forward. Lyserg was gentler, taking Jeanne's hand and leading her forward, careful not to let her stumble. It was not this girl's fault she was brought up by monsters, and so he felt that he needed to be a gentleman.

Anna had no such qualms about her prisoner, and dragged her about like a rag doll. "You don't need to do that, Anna." Lyserg admonished as Anna grabbed the girl's collar and nearly choked her getting her to her feet when the girl stumbled and fell to the ground. Anna responded with a glare that would peel paint and her free hand drifted to the knife in her belt. Lyserg wisely shut up.

Lyserg breathed an inaudible sigh of relief when the entrance to the base came into view. Quickly they went through and Lyserg undid the blindfold. Jeanne blinked in the dark of the tunnel, fluffing her feathers at the slight chill. Anna didn't un-blindfold her charge, preferring to drag the stumbling girl along.

Jeanne seemed unconcerned by her servant's treatment, instead looking with distain at the various rebels that gathering, babbling softly, to watch as they passed. Lyserg and Anna went directly to the holding cells. Lyserg gently pushed Jeanne into one. Anna shoved her girl in the same cell and slammed the door with a distasteful sniff.

Lyserg went to say something, but then thought better of it. He suddenly felt bone-weary, the adrenaline wearing off and leaving him drained. He slowly trudged to his room. On the way he passed Yoh and Hao, who looked as weary as he did.

Yoh smiled tipsily at him and gave him a thumbs-up. Lyserg returned the gesture and then nodded as he waved goodbye. The tired young men went to find their beds and sleep, their tasks finished.

Wolf: Review plz!


	24. Chapter 24

Wolf: Owns nothing!

Hao yawned and stretched as he woke up. Sitting up we worked little kinks out of his body before reaching over and nudging his brother on his shoulder. Yoh grumbled and snuggled deeper into his blankets. Hao sighed and switched on the light, getting up to dress himself.

"Come on, Yoh." He said patiently as he pulled on his boots. "You can't stay in bed all day."

"Yes I could." Yoh protested from under his blankets.

"You could, but you shouldn't." Hao grabbed the covers and threw them off Yoh. He stood over his brother, hands on his hips. "Now, are you going to get up, or am I going to have to give you a nice cold shower?"

"You wouldn't." Yoh said, glaring half-heartedly at him. Hao raised an eyebrow, challenging him to test him. Yoh finally sighed and got out of bed, grumbling all the while. "I don't see why we have to get up so early after a mission."

"Amidamaru wants to brief us." Hao reminded him. "And that should be done as soon as possible, since we didn't get to it last night, we do it now." Yoh sighed again but got on his clothes and followed Hao out of the room.

Debriefing didn't take long, and after a hearty breakfast of pancakes Yoh and Hao decided to go outside for a flight. The day was slightly cool, and the sky was steely grey, with a crowd of dark thunderheads crowding in the distance.

"Looks like rain." Hao said as he marched across the grass.

"Do you think it's safe for us to fly?" Yoh asked worriedly. Hao squinted up at the sky.

"They're pretty far away still; I think we'll be alright." Hao replied. "I do think we should keep it short today." Yoh nodded in agreement, eying the bruised clouds with unease.

"Where are you two off to on this fine day?" The twins turned at the sound of the voice and halted, letting Goldva limp up to them.

"We were going for a flight, Goldva." Hao responded. Goldva snorted.

"Us Dogs aren't meant up to be in the air." He growled. "Our feet belong firmly planted on the earth, our mother."

"Maybe your feet Goldva, but I for one enjoy the sight of the earth far below my feet." Hao said with a laugh. "Maybe you should try it sometime." Goldva shuddered.

"Get on the back of one of those oversized lizards? No thanks, I'll walk." He said, shaking his head and moving towards the apple tree grove.

"He's such an old codger." Hao said, shaking his head affectionately at Goldva's back.

"Yeah, but he's a good man." Yoh replied. Hao nodded and the two of them continued on. In the middle of the valley Hao and Yoh let out whistles, calling their dragons to them. Kochi and Cho came quickly, uttering whistle-clicks of joy at seeing their Chosen.

After a quick few pats the twins were up in the air and soaring high. Yoh watched the approaching thunderstorm with fascination. Hao yelled over to him. "What are you thinking about, otouto?"

"Oh, nothing." Yoh replied. Hao laughed.

"Why am I not surprised?" Yoh gave him a mock-glare and looked back at the clouds.

"Do you like thunderstorms, aniki?" Yoh asked after a minute. Hao looked at the billowing, towering mass getting closer and closer and nodded.

"Yeah, I do like them." He replied. "But I don't think we'll enjoy being caught in one, so we should go down."

"You're right." Yoh yelled and gently steered Cho down to the grass. Hao followed and the two of them led their dragons to the barn to wait out the approaching storm. When they re-emerged from the barn the wind had picked up and the sky had darkened further, turning day into twilight.

"We should go in." Hao said. "The sky looks ready to open up on us." Yoh nodded in agreement. The two of them ran for the base, and not a moment too soon. As they were headed inside it began to pour and a bright stab of lightning lit up the sky. Both clapped hands over ears, the thunder was like someone had fired a shot right next to their heads.

"Come on." Hao jerked his head at Yoh as he opened the door. Yon nodded and went inside with his brother. Inside they found Lyserg shaking his head, looking angry.

"What's up, Lyserg?" Yoh asked. "You look upset." Lyserg looked up and growled softly.

"It's Anna." He snarled. "That girl is insufferable. Do you know what she said about the little Dog girl that we brought in when Amidamaru asked about her? She said the little... I will not repeat the word she used, but she said the girl could rot, fitting punishment for one that served the Angels so closely."

"But it's not the girl's fault she is servant to Jeanne." Yoh said, a bewildered expression on his face. "Why would she say something like that?"

"The girl's got issues, that's why." Hao rumbled softly. "Where is this girl now?"

"We put her in the cell with Jeanne, we don't know what to do with her." Hao rubbed his chin, thinking.

"Remember when you first brought me here, Yoh?" He asked. "I was only allowed to go anywhere if you were with me."

"I remember. I remember you resented it so much." Yoh replied, scratching an ear. "What does this have to do with anything?"

"I was thinking that we could do the same with this girl." Hao explained. "The whole point of bringing the girl here was to give her freedom, right?" Yoh nodded. "Well, we can't very well do that with her sitting in a cell, and we can't let her roam around freely without being sure of her loyalties."

"You have a point." Lyserg said thoughtfully. "But will Amidamaru go for it?"

"That is Commander Amidamaru." Amidamaru boomed as he marched up to them. All of them snapped a hasty salute. His scowl melted into a teasing smile. "And I think that is a wonderful idea."

"Really? You'll let us do it?" Yoh asked eagerly.

"Of course. You kids are the people I'd actually trust the most with this task." Yoh jumped about happily and then paused, face growing sober.

"What about Jeanne? Is she going to stay in that cell the whole time?" Amidamaru reached down and patted his head reassuringly.

"No, once we have a more comfortable, but secure room for her, she will be moved, but for now..." He halted a moment, contemplating. "I think this will be good for her, give her a taste of what so many have had to endure under the rule of the Angels." His voice was a low growl, ears folded back in anger.

"You won't hurt her though?" Lyserg asked, alarmed by the look of fury on Amidamaru's face. Amidamaru looked down at him, startled, and his face melted into a kind smile.

"No, of course not. I would never harm a child. Besides, we are trying to show her that we are the good guys, and the Angels are the ones that are the bad ones."

"Right." Lyserg sighed with obvious relief. Amidamaru ruffled his hair once before moving on his way.

"Oh, you'll have to send the girl back to her cell if you can't supervise her, you know that, right?"

"Yes sir." The three boys chorused as he walked out of sight. Yoh raced down to the cells, Hao following at a more leisurely pace. Lyserg was meeting with his parents, so he couldn't come. Yoh waited impatiently at the cell door for Hao to catch up, Hao only smiled at the mildly annoyed expression on Yoh's face.

"I think you should be the one to talk her out of there." Hao told his brother. Yoh shook his head.

"It would be better if it was her own kind that was coaxing her out of there." He replied.

"No, otouto, I'm no good with people, you know that. Besides, she's a servant, if she's told to do something, she'll do it. We'll work on trust after we have her out of that cell." Yoh paused to think about this a moment and then dipped his head in agreement.

Yoh pulled the keys from the sentry guarding the cell bank and opened the one with the two prisoners in it. Jeanne's eyes leapt like flames at the sight of him. The girl only cowered, cringing away at the sight of the Cat standing in the doorway.

"Have you come to your senses?" Jeanne asked imperiously. "I am your angel, and you should treat me as such."

"Not to seem rude, miss, but I'm not here for you." Yoh said politely, and then crooked his fingers at the Dog servant. The girl trembled but got up and went to him, bowing subserviently. Yoh put a hand around her shoulders, ignoring it when she stiffened and whimpered, and closed the door again.

"Hello there." He said softly, letting go of her. "My name is Yoh, what's yours?"

"T-Tamao." The girl stuttered, still very nervous.

"You don't need to be scared, Tamao." Yoh soothed. "We're not going to hurt you."

"We?" Tamao asked timidly. Yoh gestured to his brother, who had been hiding in the shadows. Tamao jumped and cringed as Hao seemed to melt out of the darkness. She seemed to sense a danger in him and shrank back when he walked up. Hao gave Yoh an 'I-told-you-so' glare.

'_Give her some time, aniki. Let her know it's alright.'_

"Hello, Tamao, my name is Hao." Hao said, trying to keep his voice gentle. "I am Yoh's twin brother." This visibly startled Tamao and she took an unconscious step forward, staring between the two of them. A strange look came over her face. They certainly looked alike, but no Cat would ever...

"B-But that...that would have to mean...I didn't think..."

"There are different kinds of Cats out there in the world, Tamao." Yoh said quietly. "Not all of them are like the Angels." Tamao shivered at the name. "The people here are working to overthrow the Angels and put in place a government that will abhor slavery and not use intimidation and torture to control its people."

Tamao shook her head slightly, seemingly unable to believe what Yoh was saying. Yoh sighed softly. "We're here to take you around the base, let you see how things work." Hao continued for his brother. "Maybe that will help you see what we are talking about."

Wolf: Review plz!


	25. Chapter 25

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh and Hao flanked Tamao as they walked back out of the cell bank. Tamao cringed whenever either of them brushed against her. Hao and Yoh exchanged looks over her bent head; getting her to come out of her shell was going to prove as difficult as Hao was the first couple of months.

"I was thinking of where we should start the tour." Yoh said aloud, trying to break the uncomfortable silence. Tamao jumped at the sound of his voice and fell into Hao. Hao gently set her upright.

"Thank you." She said in a tiny voice. Hao nodded down at her, face revealing nothing. Tamao wasn't sure which scared her more, the Cat, or the silent, brooding Dog.

"Yeah, thanks aniki, anyways, we can't go outside because of the thunderstorm-"

"We should take her to get cleaned first." Hao interrupted quietly, nose wrinkling almost imperceptibly at the mingled odour of unwashed, fear-sweat-soaked body, and simple terror washing over him from Tamao. Yoh blinked at him and then frowned slightly.

"We can't leave her alone." He reminded, giving Tamao an apologetic look that she didn't see, looking intently at the floor as she was. "And we can't go into the girls' bathroom." Hao let out a short laugh at the scandalized look on his brother's face.

"Alright, you got me. I suppose we could get Eliza to help her out, and get you a check-up in the process, hmm?" He directed his last remark at Tamao, who didn't lift her eyes from the floor. The twins turned in the direction of the infirmary, trying to avoid the more high traffic areas, for Tamao's sake.

Eliza looked up and smiled as they came in. "That's some storm out there." Tamao hid behind Hao at her soft, whispery voice. "I sure hope Faust is alright." Her voice held gentle love and a slight melancholy.

"He'll be fine." Hao said. "He's looking after the girls. We have a favour to ask of you, actually." He explained the situation with Tamao and what they wished Eliza to do.

"I think I can manage that." Eliza said thoughtfully. "I do not have much to do right now." She smiled and followed them out of the infirmary and down to the girls' bathroom. She carefully led Tamao inside, taking care to bring clean garments with her.

Hao and Yoh sat down to wait, practicing their invisibility as they did so. To become invisible was simply mind over matter; if one believed they were invisible, they could disappear in plain view. And to prove that fact, none of the others that passed them saw them at all sitting there, though they looked.

Several minutes later Eliza came out with Tamao. She looked around in confusion. "Yoh? Hao?" She jumped and Tamao let out a little scream when they seemed to appear out of nothing.

"Sorry, sorry." Yoh apologized. "So, how's she doing?" Eliza let out a low hiss. Yoh and Hao stared at her in surprise and noticed that she was shaking and her tail lashed back and forth in anger. "What's wrong, Eliza?"

"I need to do some more tests." She said simply, the words working out of her with difficulty. Without another word she hurried off towards the infirmary, the twins running to catch up. Eliza had Tamao stand for x-rays when they were in the medical bay. Yoh and Hao watched quietly, somewhat confused by Eliza's reactions to the girl.

"Eliza, what's this about?" Hao asked, as Eliza examined the x-rays. Tamao had been given a mug of soothing tea, and it seemed to have calmed her down some.

"This girl has been tortured." Eliza hissed angrily. "I first saw the evidence on her back, old and new weal marks, from a whip." Yoh hissed softly, and Hao growled. "I decided to confirm any more suspicions I had and got her x-rays."

"And the verdict?"

"Her arm has been broken at least once, and she has a couple of old breaks on her ribs and legs." Eliza replied furiously. "How can they..." She trailed off, shaking her head. She turned to Tamao, who was sitting on the examination table, and knelt down so they were on the same level. "Tamao, was it?" Eliza's voice was gentle, kind. Tamao nodded, not looking her quite in the eye. "Why were you hurt like this?"

"I was bad, and my lady, or the Archangel, would punish me." Tamao answered softly.

"Who gave you the broken bones?" Eliza asked.

"That was the Archangel, he has a heavier hand than my lady. Not that I didn't deserve it." Tamao added, beginning to shake again.

"No, no, no." Eliza soothed. "No one deserves the sort of treatment you've been given." Tamao only shook her head, staring at the floor. Hao moved away with Yoh as Eliza continued with Tamao's check-up.

"No wonder she's so scared." Yoh whispered sadly. "Any wrong move and she was beaten."

"The Angels are a cruel and sadistic bunch." Hao growled, folding his arms across his chest. "And that Archangel..." His eyes grew fiery. "I have a few things I'd like to do to him."

"Me too." Yoh hissed. Hao looked at Yoh in surprise; he wasn't usually so bloodthirsty. Yoh saw him looking. "What? After all that I've seen, you don't think I'd be angry?" Hao only smiled and ruffled his hair before heading back over to Eliza.

"There are no injuries that need attention, and she has been given all the required vaccines." Eliza said.

"Of course, they don't want her getting sick and having to replace such a subservient girl." Hao mumbled almost inaudibly.

"I heard that, and I agree." Eliza said. "I think the storm has passed, you should take her outside."

"That's a good idea." Yoh yipped happily. "Come on Tamao, we're going to show you the best place in this entire base." Tamao found herself smiling slightly, shyly at Yoh's enthusiasm. Yoh saw it and grinned back before bouncing off, not waiting for them to follow. Hao sighed heavily and gestured for Tamao to go ahead while he took up the rear.

When they got outside, Tamao gasped in awe. The sun had peeked through a hole in the dispersing clouds and shone down like a spear of light from heaven. The light danced off the raindrops caught in the grass, turning them to diamonds sparkling all around them. Tamao took an unconscious step forward, onto the wet grass.

She stepped forward again and again, until she was standing fully in the bright, warm sunlight. She lifted her face up and closed her eyes, drinking in the light. For the first time since her kidnapping she was still, and seemed to be at peace.

That peace was shattered however when Cho and Kochi dropped out of the sky like bright, glittering thunderbolts to land in front of the twins, chirping happily. Tamao screamed and stumbled back, sprawling into the wet grass.

"It's ok, Tamao." Yoh said, gently rubbing Cho's forehead. "They're friendly, they're our, well, pets I guess."

"P-Pets?" Tamao repeated sceptically, staring up at the large creatures. Cho craned her neck around Yoh to stare at her and uttered an inquiring whistle. Tamao scrambled backwards further. Yoh knelt down next to her, bringing Cho's big head with him. Reaching out, he gripped her hand gently and placed it on Cho's nose.

"See? She likes you." Yoh said as Cho hummed and rubbed against Tamao's hand. Tamao managed a nervous laugh and Yoh let go. She slowly lowered her hand and stood up, backing up slightly from Cho, who gave a low mournful hoot.

"It's ok Cho." Yoh soothed, turning his back on Tamao. There was nowhere for Tamao to go out here, so he wasn't too worried about keeping a close eye on her. Hao seemed to agree with the sentiment, involved as he was with giving Kochi a good scratch under her chin.

Tamao didn't move however, too scared to go anywhere without permission. She simply looked around at the beautiful valley wistfully and sighed. She looked down at her new dress, now covered in grass stains, sure she would get beaten yet again for getting it dirty.

"What the hell are you doing out of your cell?" Tamao flinched at the familiar, cold voice and looked up to find Anna glaring at her.

"Please, mistress.."

"I asked you a question, now answer me!" Anna demanded, lifting one hand to strike Tamao. Tamao cowered and closed her eyes, waiting for the blow. It never came and Tamao opened her eyes in confusion to see Hao holding Anna's wrist in a tight grip.

Tamao went cold at the dark, frightening, barely-controlled fury on the dark Dog's face. "Don't ever try that again, Anna." Hao's voice was deadly, threatening.

"How dare you?" Anna demanded. "Let go of me." Hao's grip only tightened until the bones in Anna's wrist ground together painfully. She fell silent, biting back a cry of pain, and settled for glaring at him instead.

"I don't like you Anna, I've always thought you were a bitch, but it wasn't my problem so I stayed quiet. But I don't like the way you're treating this girl. We were given permission to escort her around the base, not that it's any of your business." Hao said dismissively. "If I ever find you treating her, or anyone else, with such disrespect and cruelty again, I will hurt you."

"You can't threaten me." Anna snarled. "I could have you thrown in a cell, or better yet, euthanized, just for threatening me." Hao laughed mirthlessly at her.

"You may not have realized this yet Anna, so let me make it clear." Hao's tone was acidic. "Amidamaru trusts me more than he'll ever trust you, so go ahead and tell him, it won't make a difference." He released her arm and she stumbled back a step.

"I will get you." She threatened and then turned and stalked back in the base. Hao turned to find Tamao staring, wide-eyed, at him.

"Y-you were protecting me?" She asked, voice little and confused.

"I don't like people that cause pain to those less powerful than they are." Hao replied shortly. "Me and my brother both."

"Anna just doesn't take me seriously, so I let Hao handle it." Yoh explained further. "We're not going to hurt you Tamao, we want to help you, ok?" Tamao nodded vaguely, suddenly feeling weary. Yoh noted the slump of her shoulders. "Do you want to go and rest?" He asked. Tamao nodded.

"We'll have to take you back to the cell then." Hao reminded gently.

"That's ok." Tamao sighed. "Only...may I have a cell of my own? I fear my lady will not be happy about my freedom."

"And she'll hurt you." Hao said, understanding. Tamao nodded miserably. "Ok, I think we can arrange that, if that's what you want?" His words seemed to strike a chord in Tamao. What she wanted? No one ever asked that. It implied that they were equals, giving her the option. The idea compelled her and she lifted her face to look Yoh and Hao in the eyes for the first time.

"Yes." She said, voice wavering slightly. "That's what _I _want."

Wolf: Review plz!

P.S. There will be no YohxTamao in this, no romance at all, I'm thinking. So, all you worriers out there, be happy!


	26. Chapter 26

Wolf: I own nothing.

Ren leaned against the wall, driving rain soaking his already shivering form. His one arm wrapped around his chest as a sick, stabbing pain went through it. He could only see out of one of his eyes, the other was swollen beyond belief. His breath came in harsh, wheezing gasps as he pushed away from the wall again.

"Come on Bason." He croaked, weaving slightly. His companion fared little better than he did and limped along on a leg swollen to twice the size it normally was. He groaned as he struggled to stand.

"What are we going to do?" He asked in a gravelly, hoarse voice.

"I don't know." Ren admitted through chattering teeth. "There's no way we'll be able to find another job, the Archangel will have taken care of that personally, just like our discipline." He spat furiously. "There's nowhere for us in this world anymore." He added morosely, staring into the driving rain.

"So-" Ren held up a hand and Bason fell silent in mid-word. Ren's ears twitched and pricked towards a strange sound. Bason froze too, instantly sliding into a half-crouch. Neither had their halberds, but they each found a long piece of pipe and held it up as a weapon.

Neither of them were guards anymore, but the instinct was there, and neither of them were willing to allow themselves to get jumped in the dark night. They were near the transport yards, where large shipments were brought before being sorted and transported out again to their various designations.

It was this yard that the noises were coming from. Bason and Ren could see dark figures in one of the transports, taking out what looked like weapons and loading them in bags on their backs. Ren knew that they were rebels, and that there would be no retaliation against them while they had the little 'angel'. Ren snorted at the foolishness of their 'esteemed' leader and his eyes grew flinty.

"This is none of our business." He said to Bason in a low voice. "Let's get out of here."

They turned slowly, painfully and found themselves being watched by two dark figures standing blocking their way. Both were wearing all black with a helmet that covered the head and obscured their faces completely. Neither had heard the figures come up behind them and a sneaking suspicion coiled through Ren's mind.

"You two were the ones that kidnapped the angel." He hissed, holding up his length of pipe. "You cost us our careers!" he roared and then made a run at the two of them. Pain flared in his chest and he stumbled, falling face first into a puddle. He tried to stand but his arms would not support him so he lay in the puddle, wheezing lightly.

Suddenly there were hands on his shoulders, helping him up. They were not Bason's hands, they were too small. He managed to turn his head a fraction to find one of the dark figures helping him to his knees. One of the hands slipped over his chest and he let out a low groan of pain.

"That hurts?" The voice was light, concerned. "Is there something broken in there?"

"What do you think?" Ren snarled, trying to struggle free of the dark-clad male, who was in fact Yoh. "After your little stunt the Archangel disciplined us and then threw us out of our jobs!"

"This isn't discipline." The other said in a lower, angrier voice. This was Hao and he watched Bason warily, pistol in one hand. Bason merely eyed him wearily and put down the pipe he was holding.

"Bason!" Ren yelped, angry and horrified.

"Relax, we can get you help." Yoh soothed. Ren only struggled angrily in his grip, but was too weak to break free.

"Otouto, we can't bring them with us, it's not like bringing a stray animal home." Hao said patiently, not taking his eyes off Bason. "They are in league with the Angels."

"Not anymore." Bason wheezed. "We were fired, disgraced. There's nowhere left for us." He sank to one knee as his bad leg buckled beneath him.

"Aniki, at least let us take them back for medical attention, I think this one has broken ribs. They could die out here." Yoh pleaded. Hao let out a low growl, he had little sympathy for these two that had lived in the good graces of a monster for so long.

"Finally found out that this side isn't so hot after all, huh?" He sneered. "How many did you torture? How many did you kill?"

"Never, never." Bason wheezed in a small voice. "Only bodyguards, only ever bodyguards, for that little girl."

"Aniki, don't be like them." Yoh said fiercely. "We leave them out here with nothing we're no better than the man that threw them out." Hao huffed softly, but took his hand off his gun.

"Fine, otouto." He said reluctantly. "But, we have to make sure that there's no bugs on them, and they have to be blindfolded." Yoh nodded and searched Ren carefully for any trackers or any other sort of bugs while Hao did the same with Bason.

When they were both satisfied there was nothing Hao pulled a piece of cloth out from his pocket and wrapped it around Bason's eyes. Yoh did the same, though Ren jerked as the cloth came over his eyes. He reached one hand up to pull it away but a strong hand gripped his wrist.

"Do you want help, or not?" Yoh asked softly. Ren hissed but did not try to take the blindfold off again. Yoh gently gripped his arms, holding him upright as he rummaged for the transport in his pocket. Hao put a hand on his shoulder and Yoh pressed the button.

When they finished their series of three jumps Ren leaned over and threw up bile and blood in the grass. Yoh glanced over at Hao worriedly. Hao only looked back, Yoh couldn't see his face, but he knew it had that hard, expressionless look on it.

Yoh carefully slung Ren's arm around his shoulders, hoping that Ren would be able to stay conscious until they made it through the mountains to the base. Hao, however, had a better idea and put a hand to his helmet, activating his communication with the base.

"Sir, we got a couple of injured Cats out here, could use some help bringing them in." Yoh shot Hao a grateful look. "Yes, sir, steps have been taken to ensure they can't compromise the secrecy of our operations. Yes, sir, thank you sir." He turned to Yoh. "Commander's sending a couple of guys out here with stretchers. Doubt our injured comrades here could walk all the way there."

"Thanks, aniki." Yoh sighed, and helped Ren to sit down on the rocky ground. Ren's breath came in soft, bubbly, wheezing gasps. Yoh worried that one of his ribs may have pierced his lung. "I hope they hurry." He murmured.

Not two minutes later four rebels in full camouflage gear raced out with stretchers. Working efficiently they strapped the two injured Cats onto them and moved at a quick trot back to the base. Yoh and Hao kept in step, Yoh hovering over the two on the stretchers.

Ren struggled weakly against the straps holding down to the stretcher. He felt a change in the air that signalled to him that they were inside, and judging by the slight chill in the air they were also headed underground. When they were stopped something plastic was placed over his mouth and nose.

He could taste some sweet gas on his tongue as he inhaled and struggled anew. They were trying to drug him, sedate him, and he wanted no part of it. Unfortunately he had to breathe and soon he was fighting the urge to sleep, to give in. Soon however his eyelids slipped closed and he drifted into painless dark.

%&%&%&%

"What do you think Amidamaru will do with them when they're better?" Yoh asked Hao, legs swinging as he sat on the edge of his bed. Hao didn't look up from the book he was reading and simply shrugged. "I mean, if they got fired, there's really nothing left for them out there, is there? But, if they don't agree with our ideals we can't keep them here either."

"You're right about that, can't keep them here like Jeanne." Yoh shuddered at the name. The last time they'd gone in there Jeanne had very calmly told them exactly what sort of punishments the Archangel would use on them when he came for her. "I guess we'll have to wait and see."

"I'm going to go over there, see if either of them have woken up yet." Yoh said, standing up. "You want to come?"

"Why not. Nothing better to do anyways." Hao replied with a faint smile as he too got up. The two of them padded through the halls to the infirmary.

"Hi, Yoh." Yoh looked around to see Tamao come up, hands behind her back, shyly gazing up at him.

"Oh, hi, Tamao." Yoh said. Tamao had thrown her lot in with the rebels and was waiting for the next time Silva went to the settlements so that she could go live there.

"Where are you going?"

"Just to check on the injured men we brought in yesterday." Yoh replied. Tamao kept in step with them, clearly having decided to tag along.

'_I think she has a crush on you, otouto.'_

'_Sigh, I know, but I feel more like a big brother to her than anything.'_

'_Going to have to let her down easy if she tries to do anything about that little crush of hers.'_

'_I know that too.'_

While the twins were silently speaking to one another they had gotten to the infirmary. Hao pushed open the door and the three of them filed in. Ren glared at them from his position strapped down to the hospital bed.

Tamao saw him and cringed back with a frightened gasp. "I remember you." Another, deep voice said. Tamao cowered at the sight of Bason blinking at her with calm, slightly drugged attention. "You were the little angel's servant."

"Not anymore." Yoh replied. "She's free." He watched Tamao make a hasty exit.

"I assume so, this is the rebel base, isn't it?" Bason's voice was slightly vague, thanks to the painkillers dripping into his veins.

"It is." Hao answered this time. "You seem a little calmer than your friend here." He jerked his head at Ren, who hissed defiantly at him.

"I guess I've just chosen to heed the writing on the wall." Bason replied. "My name is Bason, by the way."

"Hao, and this is my twin brother Yoh." Bason looked at the two of them with sleepy interest.

"I'd like to know sometime how that came about." He said, before his eyelids slid shut and he began to snore lightly. Yoh put a hand on Hao's shoulder.

"Why don't we let the two of them rest?" He said quietly. Hao nodded, curious eyes still trained on Bason's huge sleeping form. As they left he commented to his brother

"I think I'd like to talk to him more."

Wolf: Review plz!


	27. Chapter 27

Wolf: I own nothing.

Bason sat up in bed as best he could when he saw Yoh and Hao returning to the infirmary. "So, come back to talk to the invalid?" He asked jokingly.

"Ah, Hao wanted to come back, he said that you seemed interesting." Yoh said, jerking his thumb at Hao. "I just tagged along for the hell of it." Bason chuckled at that. Yoh looked over to Ren, who had been sedated earlier after trying to bite Faust as he changed his bandages over the weal marks on his back.

"His name is Ren Tao." Bason said. "I doubt he'd tell you that himself."

"You seem a lot more communicative than he is." Hao said, a definite question in his eyes. Bason chuckled again.

"I guess I've just accepted that this may be the only place for us now." He sighed. "Ren is far more stubborn, and it will take a great effort to admit that maybe the people we were working for were wrong."

"Hmph, what you're saying could be a trick to get us to put down our guards." Hao said suspiciously. Bason nodded in agreement.

"It could, and I commend you for not taking anything I say at face value." He said. "And I'm sure your commander will say the same."

"I'm sure he will." Hao replied. "So, why the ambivalence towards your former masters?"

"Well, I guess there's really no specific cause of it." Bason scratched his ear thoughtfully. "The truth is after years of watching someone punish people severely for the tiniest of infractions you get tired of it, and you start to wonder if there isn't a better way." He paused again. "You two helped us, and it didn't matter that technically we are the enemy, you didn't simply leave us to die, and... I guess to me it just shows that there is really another way. You people seem to run things well here, and I'm assuming that there's no torture involved to keep that so."

"Hell no." Hao snarled. "Our goal here is to put in place a government that doesn't need those kind of tactics to stay in power."

"Hao, simmer down please." Yoh sighed. "The man was only asking a question." Yoh gave Bason an apologetic smile. "Sorry about him, he doesn't always keep his temper in check."

"Surprised a Pit fighter as seasoned as him would be able to keep his temper at all near anyone who works for the Angels." Bason said benignly. Hao jerked and stared at Bason. "Oh yes, I remember you. Saw one of your fights a couple years back. I can see now why you could best me, and I'm assuming you taught your brother how to fight as well?"

"Yes, I did." Hao said stiffly. "And please don't remind me again about my past, I am not the same person I was back then."

"Forgive me. I did not mean to drudge up anything painful." Bason said. "A couple of my friends were thrown in the Pits at one point." He admitted sadly. "Any charm the Pits had was lost to me after that, as it is on anyone who's lost someone to their bloody grasp."

"Why, that was almost poetic." Hao chuckled.

"Must be the drugs, never was a poet." Bason muttered, easing himself back onto his pillow.

"Forgive me, but I have to ask." Yoh said quietly. "Did you ever hurt Tamao, because she seemed really afraid of you when she saw you."

"Otouto, she's afraid of every Cat." Hao pointed out.

"He is right Yoh. I never touched Tamao, but she feared me just the same. It's the 'training' those servants go through. They're taught that any little infraction will be dealt with severely, and so they learn to fear any Cats, because you never know what could be considered an infraction." Bason coughed a little. "Excuse me. I once saw that little supposed 'angel' rip into her for simply spilling a tiny amount of the drink she was carrying."

"She does seem like the type." Yoh shivered. "Those eyes of her, they're like they're already dead, there's no emotion in them at all."

"No kidding. That little girl has always given me the heebie jeebies." Bason disclosed with a shiver of his own.

Bason?" Ren blinked open bleary eyes and then glared at the twins. "Why are you talking to them, Bason? They are the enemy."

"We are no longer in the service of the Archangel." Bason reminded him calmly. "And these two saved our lives. I think we can consider them friends." Ren snorted and his glare didn't waver.

"One of you bested me. Who was it?" He demanded. Yoh held up a hand.

"That would be me." He said pleasantly. Ren hissed at him.

"Never in my life have I been bested. I am one of the best, if not the best, combat personnel in the Angel ranks-"

"Not anymore." Hao interrupted harshly. Ren opened and closed his mouth, but could find nothing to say. "And even if you were the best, Yoh was training by me, a Pit fighter. You're not going to beat him."

"I don't see why not." Ren protested petulantly.

"Because a Pit fighter learns his skills by actually fighting, and having to survive. Your skills were honed in combat practice, where people aren't actually coming at you, trying to kill you. Pit fighters therefore develop a basic repertoire of moves to use, and change their strategies as they fight to suit their needs. A veteran Pit fighter is a smart fighter, and I'm the oldest veteran, which means that I'm the smartest. You're not going to beat anyone trained by me, not by a long shot."

"I'll have my day." Hao only shook his head and sighed in exasperation.

"I told you he was stubborn." Bason grunted, closing his eyes and appearing to go to sleep once more.

"I think that means he doesn't want to talk anymore." Yoh whispered to Hao.

"You think?" Hao replied with a raised eyebrow. He put his arm around Yoh's shoulder and the two of them walked out of the infirmary.

%&%&%&%

Liam Diethel opened the door of Jeanne's room. One of the empty staff bedrooms had been fitted with a sturdy lock so that she couldn't get out. There was a bathroom attached to the room, which had its lock removed so she could not barricade herself in. Jeanne looked up from her position praying on the floor next to her bed as he came in.

"Hello, Jeanne." Liam said softly. "Do you remember me?" Jeanne cocked her head, staring at him with blank eyes.

"No, are you another one of the gods' angels." Liam shook his head.

"No Jeanne, and neither are you."

"What are you talking about? Of course I am!" Jeanne protested, a small crease appearing in her forehead.

"No Jeanne." Liam replied patiently. "You are a mortal creature called an Avian."

"You lie." Jeanne spat, anger showing on her face. "The gods will punish you." Liam lifted his face to the ceiling and gave a mighty, weary sigh.

"I see this isn't going to work." He said and pulled a pair of handcuffs from the belt around his waist.

"What are you doing?" Jeanne demanded as Liam reached for her hands.

"I'm sorry my dear, this is the only way you're going to be allowed out of this room." He clipped one handcuff on her wrist, and the other on his own. The chain between was about a foot and a half long, leaving Jeanne with enough space to feel comfortable, or so Liam hoped.

Jeanne was silent throughout the whole trip through the base. When Liam pushed open the door to the valley she let out an almost inaudible gasp of wonder. Liam smiled, the valley still could work its magic. He walked out onto the grass and Jeanne followed, stretching her wings out in the open air. Liam scanned the valley and soon found what he was looking for.

"Jeanne, have a look over there." He said, pointing over to the near grove of trees, under which Hao was reading quietly. What Hao didn't see was Yoh creeping through the trees above him, preparing to ambush him.

"Ah good, the dirty Dog is about to get his just rewards." Jeanne said tonelessly. Liam only chuckled. Just as Yoh launched himself at his brother, Hao set down his book and turned himself around, grabbing Yoh in a bearhug as he came down. The two of them tumbled head over heels in the grass, Yoh laughing hysterically.

Hao managed to pin Yoh to the ground and proceeded to tickle his sensitive stomach. "ANIKKIIIII!" Jeanne and Liam heard Yoh shriek between giggles. "Stop that!"

"What's that, otouto?" Hao teased. "I can't quite hear you."

"I GIVE! I GIVE!" Yoh yelled, trying vainly to squirm out of Hao's grip. Hao relented and allowed him up. Yoh immediately grabbed Hao in a happy bearhug. After an initial startled moment Hao returned it, sighing happily.

Yoh then noticed Liam and Jeanne watching them and extracted himself and bounced over. "Hi!" He cried, grinning joyfully. Jeanne frowned up at him.

"What was that?" She demanded.

"Huh?" Yoh blinked in bewilderment.

"That Dog, why did you allow him to do that?" She demanded. Hao had wandered over at this point and his lip curled up in a faint snarl.

"Oh, this is Hao, he's my brother. We were having fun, right aniki?" Yoh nudged Hao gently.

"Oh, yeah." Hao said vaguely. Jeanne glared at him. "What?" He snapped at her.

"A Dog should not speak that way to its natural masters." Jeanne snapped back.

"You are so lucky I don't hit little girls." Hao growled angrily.

"Your kind are nothing but stupid, violent creatures, it's no wonder you deserve the kind of lives you have under the Archangel."

"Deserve?" Hao growled softly. "Did an eight year old boy deserve to be thrown into the Pits?" he spat. "Did I deserve to have my childhood destroyed in one bloody instant? Let me tell you something about your precious Archangel little girl, he's the one who sends little children to their deaths in that hellhole known as the Pits, the blood of innocents are on his hands. Maybe you should remember that the next time you start singing his praises."

Jeanne's mouth worked, but no sound came out of it. She stared, hypnotized, into Hao's dark, angry and grief-hazed eyes for a long moment before Hao turned his face away. He stalked away and Yoh followed, the two of them like dark suns that revolved around each other, lonely and yet together.

Wolf: Review plz!


	28. Chapter 28

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Ren? Ren, I know you're awake." Ren grunted and turned his face away from Bason, refusing to open his eyes. He heard the older man sigh. "You are so stubborn, you know that?" Ren didn't answer, but Bason continued anyways. "Here we are, in the company of people who consider our kind the enemy and their prime concern is getting us back in good shape. Can't you even muster some gratitude?"

"Gratitude?" Ren hissed angrily. "They're probably just waiting until we get better, then they'll torture us for information." Bason shook his head.

"If they wanted to do that, they would have done it immediately, while we were already in pain. Easier to break a man when he's already in pain." Bason replied. "No, these people are a different breed than the ones we used to work for Ren, and I for one have half a mind to join them."

"Why?" Ren demanded, twisting his head to glower at Bason.

"I think you know why, hell I've seen it in your eyes when you look at some of the poor creatures that the Archangel brings in for interrogation. You and I don't like their methods, and here they don't use those methods at all. So, what I'm saying is, this may be an opportunity for a new start."

"A new start." Ren scoffed. "What makes you think they'd even take us?" He asked tiredly. Bason shrugged.

"I don't know if they will, and if they did we'd probably have to do something to prove our loyalty to them."

"Like what?"

"Maybe give up information that would help them finish up this silent little war." Bason replied thoughtfully. Ren snorted.

"It's not as though we were in the inner circle, we don't have information to give them."

"I wouldn't be too sure of that." Bason replied ponderously. He stopped talking though, because Hao had come in, half-carrying Yoh.

"Faust!" The young Dog bellowed, fear tingeing his yell slightly. Bason couldn't see what was wrong until he caught sight of the metallic crossbow bolt sticking out of Yoh's back. It didn't look like it was in deep, but it looked as though it hurt like hell, as evidenced by Yoh's soft panting gasps for air and the way his whole body was rigid.

"Oh dear, not again." Faust sighed as he came out and saw the half-conscious Cat. He quickly made Hao lay Yoh face-down on the operating table. He tutted at the sight of the crossbow bolt imbedded just above Yoh's hip, mere centimetres from his spine. "If that had gone an inch to the left his spine would have been shattered."

"It was meant for me." Hao said. "I saw it coming, but Yoh somehow got it in his head that I was in trouble and tried to push us both out of the way. Instead he gets an arrow in his back." Hao laughed, a jagged, mirthless sound almost like a sob. Yoh whimpered softly at the sound and shifted on the table.

Faust looked up from inspecting the wound. "I can get it out, but it's barbed, and going to be very painful. Do you want me to put him under?" Hao looked at Yoh, who nodded softly. Hao nodded at Faust.

Faust gave him a small plastic mask and Hao carefully held it over Yoh's mouth and nose. Yoh didn't protest, he simply breathed in the sweet gas that was pumped through. Hao used his free hand to stroke Yoh's sweaty hair as Yoh's eyelids drooped. Yoh kept his eyes on Hao the whole time, until they slipped completely closed as Yoh uttered a low, grateful sigh.

Hao stepped back as Faust go to working the barbed point of the crossbow bolt out of Yoh's flesh. "Nasty weapon." Bason commented. Hao turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "Your brother got real lucky, that thing punctures something vital and it's all over."

"I can see that." Hao replied. "Now, I have a question for you."

"Ask away." Bason said despite a warning hiss from Ren.

"How long do you think the Archangel will keep those captives alive now that we have his little 'angel'?" Bason rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Who knows, he might not kill them at all if you have her." He replied. "See, the Archangel put her out as an angel to convince the masses that the gods were on their side. After awhile however he started to really believe it. So, he may believe that if the girl dies, he loses the favour of the gods, and of his people. Although that has been dwindling for months now." He added as an afterthought.

"Really?" Hao said with interest. Faust had finished with Yoh and had taped a gauze bandage over the puncture wound. "What's the verdict Doc?"

"He's going to be just fine." Faust replied. "In fact, you can probably take him back to your room. Just make sure he doesn't turn over in his sleep, that would be quite painful."

"I should think so." Hao murmured and then carefully turned Yoh over and lifted him up, one arm under his armpits and the other under his knees. He carefully manoeuvred Yoh's lolling head so that it rested on his chest and then nodded a goodbye to Bason and Ren before leaving the infirmary.

%&%&%&%

Bason laid against his pillow, hands folded over his chest and stared thoughtfully down at the cast covering his broken leg. He knew that was the only reason he had no straps on him, unlike Ren who continued to be tied down by both his wrists and his ankles. Currently Ren was muttering darkly to himself while pulling at the straps uselessly.

"You know, they're not going to have much more patience with you if you keep trying to hurt the people that come with food or to check your wounds." Bason said slowly. Ren growled softly. "I'm serious. I doubt they'll kill you but you could be sent back to fend for yourself."

"So what, I could do it on my own." Ren snapped, but Bason heard little conviction in his voice.

"Listen to yourself." Bason hissed. "You know that no one disgraced by the Archangel himself will ever get a job anywhere, and it would only be a matter of time before you were caught if you took up thievery." Ren stayed silent, his jaw was locked, but Bason saw a tiny shiver run up his body. "What do we owe the Archangel?" He demanded. "Nothing but anger for how he threw us in the gutter. It's not right, we did our jobs, there was nothing we could have done, and still he lives us for dead. Do you really want to stay loyal to someone like that?" Ren's shoulders slumped tiredly.

"Maybe you're right." He said in a tiny voice. "Maybe you're right about it all." Bason said nothing, letting the younger male sort out whatever feelings or doubts that were plaguing him. "It's just hard to let go of a life that you've always known, a mentality that has been hammered into you from the time you were born."

"I know it, I know." Bason replied gently. "But we have to be able to acknowledge when the way we've been taught is wrong. We have to be able to adapt, otherwise we will be left behind."

"You're probably right." Ren sighed, closing his eyes. "But what can we give them? To prove that we are serious, I mean."

"Hmm, we could tell them about the defences and layout of the Archangel's keep." Bason suggested. Ren's eyes opened wide; he hadn't considered that.

"You think it will be enough?" He asked. Bason shrugged.

"It gives them enough to launch a sneak attack, so I'm assuming."

"I still want a second shot at that Cat." Ren growled, unable to stop thinking about how Yoh had bested him. Bason chuckled softly, shaking his head.

"I don't think I'd expect anything less." He admitted. "So, the next time their leader, Amidamaru, shows up, we give them the information?"

"May as well." Ren sighed carelessly, shifting himself as he settled back to sleep once more.

%&%&%&%

"Well, gentlemen, forgive me for not coming back sooner, but I've had some work to deal with." Amidamaru said as he regarded Bason and Ren with grave eyes. "Anything new to say to me today?" He asked without much hope.

"Actually, yes, we do." Bason responded slowly, much to Amidamaru's surprise. The Snow Leopard raised an eyebrow, waiting for Bason to continue. Bason gulped and looked over at Ren, who sighed and nodded slowly. "We wish to pledge our loyalty to the rebel faction." Amidamaru's eyebrow arched higher.

"And why should I believe you?" He asked them.

"You wish us to prove our loyalty?" Ren queried. Amidamaru chuckled.

"Well, considering you are not staying loyal to your old masters..." He trailed off, letting them draw their own conclusions. "I need to know you are willing to take down the Angels, in some form or another."

"I think we can arrange that." Bason replied while Ren nodded in agreement. Amidamaru pulled up a chair.

"I'm listening." He spoke softly, with gentle coaxing in his voice.

"We can tell of the defences and layout of the Archangel's main keep." Ren said after a moment of hesitation. Amidamaru's sharp eyes grew sharper and his voice came out as a low rumble.

"Tell me."

Wolf: Review plz!


	29. Chapter 29

Wolf: I own nothing!

"Gentlemen." Hao and Yoh looked up from the books they were reading and saluted Amidamaru respectfully. "I'd like you two to introduce our newest initiates to the base." He stepped aside to indicate Ren and Bason, who were standing behind him. "They will be sharing a room next to yours. Try not to wear them out, they are not yet healed."

"Why does it seem like we're always the welcoming committee?" Hao grumbled good-naturedly. Amidamaru chuckled.

"Maybe because you are the best example of a successful integration?" He suggested. Hao made a rude noise but was smiling. Amidamaru laughed softly once more and left the four of them alone. Bason shifted awkwardly on his crutch and smiled while Ren merely glared at the two of them.

"Well, the man said to show you around, so that's what we're going to do." Yoh announced, standing up and bouncing over to the two of them. "Welcome to the rebel faction I guess." Ren eyed his open grin sceptically.

"I still can't believe you beat me." He muttered. Yoh frowned slightly.

"Well, I'm not about to prove that point now."

"Why not? Afraid of me?" Ren taunted. Yoh shook his head benignly.

"No, I just don't want to hurt you. You're still healing from a couple of broken ribs; it would not be a good idea to be tempting fate." Yoh shrugged. "That shiner around your eye's looking better though." Ren only snorted.

"Well, let's get this show on the road." Hao grumped. "You going to be able to keep up with that bum leg of yours?" He asked Bason with a raised eyebrow.

"Just try and stop me." Bason laughed. He gamely waved one of his crutches in the air before hop-clumping out of the twins' way. He did seem to have excellent control on the crutches but Yoh and Hao set a slower pace than normal all the same.

They went through all the usual things about the base. They took Bason and Ren to see the training facilities, the showers, the cafeteria, everything. "I think we should start charging money for these things." Hao commented quietly to Yoh as Ren looked over some of the weight training equipment while Bason rested his leg for a moment. Yoh snorted in agreement at his brother's words.

"Hey you, Dog!" Hao's head snapped around and he bared his teeth in a snarl at Ren.

"My name is Hao." He growled. Ren merely sniffed, uninterested. "Well? Did you have a question?"

"Yes, I did. I see you have a sparring arena set up in here." Ren replied. Hao grunted.

"Is there a point to this?" He asked tonelessly.

"Obviously." Ren replied snidely. "I was going to challenge you to a fight, unless you don't feel up to it." Hao laughed shortly.

"It's you who's not up to it." He pointed out. "I would just wind up opening wounds. We'll talk when the doctors give you clearance. In the meantime I'd suggest coming to watch my training sessions, see if you can't pick something up."

"You're a trainer?" Bason asked curiously. Hao nodded his head.

"I'm the best person to learn from because I know how it is to have to fight under the worst conditions imaginable." He explained. Bason bobbed his head, looking at the ring thoughtfully.

"I would like to sign up for your training, once my leg is healed off course." He finally said.

"Certainly." Hao replied with a faint smile. "Believe it or not I actually find I enjoy teaching."

"You're good at it, people generally like what they are skilled at." Bason explained. Ren hissed softly, annoyed at having been ignored.

"Shall we move on?" Yoh asked his brother. Hao nodded and they set off once more. They decided to save the best for last and when they came to the door Ren was twitching with impatience. "Are we just about done with this nonsense yet?" He asked rudely.

"Just about." Yoh replied with a cheeky grin. "We saved the best for last." Ren snorted derisively. Hao opened the door and gestured Ren through with a mocking bow. Ren growled at him, but walked through, followed by Bason. Hao winked at Yoh and then the two of them trailed after the two Cats.

Outside they found Bason and Ren staring around them, mouths open, awestruck. Hao and Yoh smiled at each other; they loved people's first reaction to the place they had privately dubbed 'a corner of paradise'.

"Have I died and gone on to the good place?" Bason asked wonderingly. Hao laughed slightly.

"No my friend." He replied, clapping Bason on the shoulder. "This is the valley, it's part of our base."

"It's...magnificent." Ren breathed, eyes wide and expression open in a look of child-like wonder. "I've never seen anything like it." Yoh peered at him in surprise.

"Really?" He asked. Ren shook his head and glared at him, folding his ears back. Yoh merely gazed back at him with a curious, encouraging expression. Ren's ears slowly pricked forward and he sighed.

"No, I've never been anywhere as beautiful as this. The little angel was meant to be kept away from places that she could be abducted from, and she disliked being away from the keep, and subsequently her keeper, anyways." Ren explained softly. "It was rare that we even got to go outside." He shrugged helplessly, shaking his head.

"Well, you don't have to worry about that here." Hao stated calmly. "You're free to come out here whenever you've got a spare moment. A lot of the people that were brought out of the Angels' grip find it soothing to come out here whenever they can."

Ren stared at Hao, noting that the young Dog's shoulders had relaxed and his face seemed less tense out here. "Even you?" He asked. Hao looked at him sharply, but saw no malice or ill intent in Ren's questing gaze. He nodded stiffly.

"Even after all this time, being underground like that reminds me of the Pits. I come up here when I need to remind myself that my life there is over." Hao admitted quietly. Yoh quietly took one of his hands and squeezed it reassuringly.

"I'm sorry." Ren murmured. "I keep thinking like one of _them, _I forget how it must have been for people like you." He seemed to have softened a little in the fragrant air of the valley. Yoh smiled slightly to himself, thinking that their little piece of paradise had worked its magic once more.

%&%&%&%

Hao danced around Lyserg lightly as they sparred in the arena. Both of them were panting, beginning to tire out, but they were also grinning. Hao was pleased that Lyserg was doing so well, and Lyserg was pleased that Hao was pleased with him.

Out of the corner of his eye Hao watched Ren and Bason quietly ease into the room to stand beside Yoh on the sidelines. He offered a briefly raised hand in greeting before going back to his training session. Lyserg gave Hao a raised eyebrow in question, but Hao brushed it off with a wave of his hand, indicating that they could talk later.

"He's really impressive." Bason commented, watching Hao move around in the arena. Yoh nodded in agreement.

"He had to be." He stated soberly. Bason sighed and shook his head.

"It's amazing that he's actually functioning in society after what he's been through." Ren commented. "Though I suspect you had a lot to do with that."

"How can you tell?" Yoh asked, eyes wide.

"It's in the way you act around each other. Even though you follow your brother, in a way he sort of follows you as well. Do you understand what I mean?" Yoh's brow crinkled slightly.

"I think so." He said, looking at Hao, who saw him and gave him a fleeting grin. "Yeah, I understand." His ears perked up and he swung his head to look back at the door. Ren and Bason followed his gaze and saw Liam and Jeanne standing there.

Jeanne saw them and shrieked. "Guards! Rescue me!" She commanded. The room had gone totally silent; watching to see what Bason and Ren would do. Ren actually made a faint jerking motion in the direction of his former charge, and then caught himself. Very deliberately he turned his back on Jeanne, and Bason followed his example.

Jeanne shrieked angrily again, but this time it had no effect. The tension melted out of the room and the frozen figures caught in the moment were able to move once more. Hao looked over at Lyserg, noticing he was staring at Jeanne still and leapt at the young Hawk.

Lyserg heard him coming and leapt out of the way. Hao landed lightly in a half-crouch, grinning widely. "Good!" He exclaimed. "You're paying attention to everything around you, that's very good!" he clapped Lyserg on the shoulder. "Training's over, go hit the showers." Lyserg grinned and punched him playfully before sauntering off.

Hao leaned on the ropes of the arena, favouring Ren with a teasing stare. "Want to have a go?"

"Huh, the doctors would have my head if I tried." Ren said, crossing his arms and scowling. Hao shrugged and swung himself over the ropes. He sauntered off to the showers.

"That Avian, the tall one, what was he doing with the little angel?" Bason asked curiously.

"Oh, that's Liam, he's the Clan leader for the Avians. He's trying to rehabilitate Jeanne."

"Jeanne, that's her name?"

"Uh huh."

"Has he had any success?" Ren asked. Yoh shook his head. "Figures." Yoh exhaled slowly.

"I know, she seems really brainwashed, but I don't think any of us are willing to give up hope yet." Ren gave him a slightly amused look.

"Are you sure you're just talking about Jeanne?"

Wolf: Sorry if this seemed like it took awhile to get updated, I'm getting heavily into schoolwork, so... Anyways, review plz!


	30. Chapter 30

Wolf: I own nothing!

Yoh blinked at Ren in confusion. "What do you mean?" He asked, tilting his head. Ren laughed slightly.

"I mean that seems to your stance in life, not giving up on people." Ren explained.

"He's right otouto." Hao agreed, coming out of the showers, rubbing a towel through his hair. "You could be talking about any number of people when you talk about hope; Anna, your grandfather, even the Angels."

"Well, I don't think even they are beyond redemption. At least not all of them." Yoh amended after Hao gave him a look. He gave his brother a somewhat sheepish look.

"It's nothing to be ashamed about, holding out hope." Hao told him softly. "If you had simply given up hope on me..." he trailed off, but his eyes told Yoh how grateful he was that he hadn't given up on him. Yoh relaxed and smiled at him gently.

"Just don't hold out any hope for the Archangel." Ren grumbled. Bason laughed and nodded in agreement.

"And I wouldn't hold out much hope for Anna as well." Hao added. Yoh sighed and shook his head.

"Who is this Anna?" Bason asked.

"A bitch." Hao replied in a growl. Yoh shook his head at him.

"Hao, that's not kind. You know she has her own... issues."

"Well she can stop taking them out on me." Hao grumbled. At Ren and Bason's confused looks he elaborated. "Anna is a Cat girl who keeps going at me, trying to make me lose control. It's not just me she's nasty to either, she seems to have a problem with everyone." Hao stopped as Yoh shushed him loudly. Yoh flicked his ear towards the door and Hao half-turned to see that Anna was walking in.

She wore her customary scowl, but today it was directed at Ren and Bason. "This whole place is going to hell, isn't it?" She commented nastily. "First they let in a murderer, and now the enemy themselves."

"Anna..." Yoh sighed. "The two of them have proved their loyalty already. They're one of us." Anna only snorted derisively.

"Hmph, don't come crawling to me when you've been betrayed." She said simply, and then turned and walked away. Hao threw up his hands in disgust.

"See what I mean?" He demanded.

"I did get a distinct sense of hostility from her." Bason replied, deadpan, with an ironic raise of his eyebrow. Hao's mouth twitched slightly before quirking upwards into a full smile. He began to chuckle softly and then a deep, rolling belly laughed echoed out of his mouth.

Yoh smiled. It was so rare for Hao to laugh like that, as though he hadn't a care in the world, but when he did it was so beautiful to hear him.

"You should laugh more often." Lyserg said quietly. No one had noticed him come in. Hao smiled wanly, the laughter dying from his face somewhat.

"Perhaps when all this is over, I'll be able to laugh more." He replied softly. Lyserg sighed in disappointment but then smiled at Ren and Bason.

"I'm sorry, we haven't been introduced." He said, extending his prosthetic hand. "I am Lyserg Diethel." Ren blinked at the hand, but shook it quickly. Bason shook and then inspected the arm curiously. "It's Avian design." Lyserg explained as Bason stared at it, intrigued.

"That would explain why it is so advanced." He replied. "What are those blue markings?" He inquired, tapping the aforementioned markings.

"They show I am of the royal family of Avians." Lyserg revealed with a smile.

"Ah, so would you be the one that the Archangel was bragging about capturing?" Ren asked. Lyserg's eyes darkened and he nodded tightly, jaw clenching.

"Lyserg doesn't like to be reminded of that." Yoh said quietly. Bason grimaced.

"It would seem there are a few sensitive topics in this base." He commented, looking from Hao to Lyserg. Hao merely shrugged while Lyserg grumbled slightly.

"This is a place where we can try to correct the mistakes of the past, and for some of us, forget them." Hao said, putting a hand on Lyserg's shoulder.

"That's not to say we should completely forget the past." Yoh added. Hao shook his head in agreement. "We need to remember the mistakes we and other people have made, so that we do not repeat them."

"You're talking about the Angels now, aren't you?" Ren raised an eyebrow at Yoh. "And in so doing you're talking about us."

"I guess I am, but I don't really think you need a lecture from me about learning from mistakes, you've already proven that you can." Yoh shrugged his shoulders. "I'm more talking about how we plan to be running things when we topple the Angels."

"You speak as though it's a done deal." Bason noticed.

"Well, you kind of have to look at it that way." Lyserg interjected. "I mean, if you allow yourself to think about the possibility of failure you can psyche yourself out and then you will fail."

"Think of it as going into a fight, and thinking you're going to lose." Hao added. "Chances are, you tell yourself you're going to lose, you will."

"So it's all psychological?" Ren asked.

"That's really what it's all about. It's the same thing with our disappearing ability, the only way it truly works is if we believe that we can be invisible."

"I should like to learn this ability." Ren said lazily.

"We will try and teach you." Yoh chuckled. "I don't think it will be so easy around here and not in the jungle though."

"Not to mention I don't think we'll ever be as good of teachers as Thahiti was." Hao put in humbly. Yoh sighed and nodded, remembering their Leopard friend that had taught them so much. Ren was about to say something else, but was interrupted by Amidamaru barging into the room with a huge smile on his face. He marched up to Yoh and hugged him, lifting him clear off the ground.

"Amidamaru!" Yoh yelped. "What's all this about? You haven't done this since I managed to get an A in school."

"Today is a great day!" Amidamaru replied, putting Yoh down. "We have completed it."

"The weapons?" Hao asked with a small amount of surprise. Amidamaru nodded, grinning hugely.

"We start training with them right away, we want to be able to get this final assault done as soon as possible."

"Do we get to train?" Bason asked.

"Of course, if you're going to be with us then you need to know how to use the weapons."

"When do we attack?" Ren asked, battle-light shining in his golden eyes.

"In one month, under the new moon."

Wolf: Review plz!


	31. Chapter 31

Wolf: I own nothing!

"You guys ready for this?" Hao asked as he, his brother, and his friends prepared for the final assault. Ren let out a derisive snort and Bason gave him a thumbs up. Lyserg gave him a feral grin and Yoh chuckled.

"I think we've been ready for this for weeks." Yoh commented lightly. "The whole place has been like a pot ready to boil over. We want something to happen."

"And finally, here we are." Bason said, hefting his laser cannon, a weapon with the look of a rocket launcher but instead of rockets, spewed a deadly laser beam. Yoh, Ren and Hao has similar weapons that were smaller and had the look of machine guns. And Lyserg...

"Try not to break that new toy of yours." Hao smirked, tapping Lyserg's prosthetic. It had been redesigned and fitted with a transformative ability that turned it into a laser cannon.

"I'll try." Lyserg answered, flexing his metallic fingers. "I'm not sure I like the added weight." He added with a faint grimace. "Hopefully they'll give me back my old prosthetic when this is done."

"I'm sure they will." Yoh assured him. None of them spoke of the other possibility that could stem from this night; the possibility that some or all of them could die tonight. None of them wanted to think about it, none of them wanted to say it out loud and jinx it.

"Men." All of them stood up and saluted Amidamaru. "Are we ready to go?"

"Yes sir!" They chorused. He smiled at them.

"Good, let's get this party started." The five of them trooped out after him. Hao grabbed Yoh and took him aside for a moment.

"Yoh, I want you to stick by me, no matter what happens, okay?" Yoh looked into his eyes and Hao saw the fear behind the adrenaline.

"Okay, aniki." Yoh replied. Hao hugged him close, breathing in his scent for a long moment.

"Whatever happens today, always know this." He murmured. "Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me."

"And me." Yoh sighed, wrapping his arms around his brother. "And don't say things like that. Nothing's going to happen today." Hao chuckled at Yoh's optimism, but said no more on his dire thoughts. They trekked out to the valley, where green grass was obscured by the sheer volume of people standing there, waiting for their marching orders.

The sky was dark as there was no moon. The only light came from the flickering torches at random intervals in the valley, illuminating the black-clad figures standing still and silent, waiting. The silence seemed to deepen as Amidamaru went to stand at the front of his assembled men and women, his white hair the only bright thing in a sea of black.

"My fellows." His deep voice rang over the valley. "Tonight we take down the Angels for good." A great rousing cheer echoed up at his words. "THIS IS THE DAY TYRANNY DIES!" A roar of approval met these bellowed words. "Now, all of you have your assignments. The assault starts as of...now."

One by one groups of rebels flickered out of existence in the valley, teleporting to pre-designated destinations to begin their assault. They would approach the keep from all sides, even from below. This was the team that Hao, Yoh, Ren and Bason were on. Lyserg was to be the signal for attack, shooting down from the sky over the keep. Yoh and Hao hoped he wouldn't get hurt in the process.

The four of them got a hold of one teleporter and winked out of the valley, into a dank, smelly sewer beneath the Archangel's keep. Yoh, Hao, Ren and Bason's noses wrinkled at the smell, and they could tell the rest of the team was doing so. Ren and Bason took the lead as they knew these tunnels better than anyone and the rest followed silently.

"We all know our job, correct?" Bason murmured, his voice carrying just enough for the rest to hear. "We get in there and drive any Angels still inside outside to where the fight is." He reminded them. "And we set the charges to implode the keep where it stands." An assortment of nodded heads and quiet murmurs told him that the plan was well understood.

They crept along before coming to a small ladder that would lead up into the keep's storage rooms. Hao and Yoh went first, using their ability to vanish into the shadows. Lifting the trapdoor they searched the storage room silently, not wanting their party to be caught by an ambush surprise. Satisfied that there was nobody, they reappeared and whistled for the others to come up.

Once assembled inside they were silent, straining for the sounds of battle to come. They had to wait until their fellows on the outside went on the attack. Their job was to drive all the Angels into the fray, but they could not do that without a fray. All the sudden Hao's large ears perked up and a slow, predatory smile crept across his face. A moment later the rest of them heard it, the roars of battle-cries issuing from hundreds of throats at once.

Grins were seen on dark-painted faces all throughout the room as they listened to the battle erupt above them. There was a clink as several members of the team dropped their explosives to the floor. As soon as that was done the team moved as one out of the storage room and into the keep. They moved silently, coming up against any opposition with speed and deadly accuracy. Most didn't see them coming, the ones that did, ran.

When they got to the main level the team split, searching out the entire keep quickly and efficiently for any hiding away. As they did so they dropped charges on every level. When the last was dropped to the ground, the timer automatically began, giving any inside five minutes to get out before the building imploded.

As the rebels hurried outside they unstrapped the guns they carried on their backs and made sure any other weapons were within reach. They charged out, taking those Angels directly outside the keep by surprise, cutting them down with their weapons in record time and leaping into the fray.

Screams and curses erupted in the air as the keep imploded, falling down on itself. The rebels ignored it, using the momentary distraction to drive the Angels further back.

Yoh and Hao were pushed further into the fight, but neither lost track of the other, grimly killing any of the white-clad Angels that tried to get in between them. Suddenly Hao leapt back as a black-clad figure, one of their own, charged at him, knife drawn. He stared in surprise into the hate-laden eyes of Anna.

"Anna?" Yoh called. "What are you doing?"

"Getting rid of troublemakers." She hissed. "No one would ever know who killed you, not when there's this much chaos, they'll just blame it on the Angels." Hao ducked another swing of the knife, keeping himself between Anna and Yoh. Amazingly enough, most of the Angels took one look at Anna's maddened face and didn't bother getting close.

"You're mistaken Anna, we're on the same side." Hao snapped.

"A murderer and his tagalong brother, you will never be anything but that, and so I must be rid of you." She hissed at them and lunged at Hao, at the last second veering so that she was aimed at Yoh. Hao reacted instinctively, dropping his weapon and one hand shooting out to grab her by the throat.

He drew the struggling girl to himself, using his free hand to twist the hand holding the knife, forcing her to drop it. She struggled harder than ever, making Hao feel like he was trying to hold onto a writhing snake. Carefully he put her head in a lock with one hand and pressed the heel of the other against her cheek.

"I'm sorry." He murmured, and then twisted. There was a sharp snap, and then the body in his arms went completely limp. "Find the peace in death you couldn't in life." He whispered as he lowered her dead body to the ground.

"Hao, aniki." Yoh whispered. Hao turned to him with a tormented expression on his face. Then his eyes widened and he leapt at Yoh, pushing him out of the way. As he fell he watched his brother's body lurch backwards as blood sprayed from his chest. A scream tore past Yoh's lips as Hao fell, bleeding from bullet wounds in his chest.

Frantically Yoh grabbed his gun and crawled over to Hao, unmindful of the battle still raging around him in the darkness. Hao was lying on his back, one hand over his chest, at the base of his ribcage. Hao looked up at him with pain in his eyes, but behind the pain was a peaceful calm.

"My turn to save your life." He whispered shakily.

"You're not going to die yet, aniki." Yoh vowed, before turning and searching out the one who had shot Hao. His eyes zeroed in on the Archangel, standing yards away, still facing him. He looked the same as his pictures, tall, thin, blonde with glasses and the parts of a lion.

As Yoh watched the Archangel calmly turned and shot Silva as he came up from behind. Then his eyes met Yoh's. Rage flowed up from inside Yoh and he found himself on his feet faster than he could blink, firing his weapon at the Archangel. In the same instant three other beams of light, one from Ren, one from Amidamaru and one from Lyserg, all surged towards the dictator in the same moment.

For an instant the Archangel seemed lit up from within and his body arched up in agony. The spectacle drew the eye of everyone on the battlefield, rebel and Angel alike. After a moment of complete and utter silence the Archangel fell, crumpling to the ground with a thud that carried throughout the entire keep.

In the moments that followed the remaining Angels seemed to lose their nerve at their leader's destruction. Some surrendered, while others outright tried to run, only to be captured by the rebels. Yoh hardly saw this however, his only concern was Hao.

Hao breathed shallowly, it hurt too much to try to breathe deep. Through dim eyes he looked up as Yoh's face came to hover over him. He felt Yoh lift his head into his lap, but as though from a great distance. Yoh's voice came to him over that distance.

"Aniki, we won. The Archangel's dead." Yoh seemed to be crying though, why was that? "Aniki, please hold on. The doctors will be here soon, just please hold on."

Hao tried to obey the plea in Yoh's anguished, desperate voice, but he felt so tired. His eyelids were so heavy, and all he wanted to do was sleep. The last thing he saw was his brother's face glistening with tears before darkness claimed him.

Wolf: Review plz!


	32. Chapter 32

Wolf: I own nothing!

_Hao was walking, walking in total darkness towards something he couldn't see, but he knew was there. He could see the light from it, and it bathed him in a comforting glow. Voices he could not recognise beckoned him to come. An intense wave of longing came over him and he increased his pace, wanting to be in that place that felt so comforting, so peaceful._

_But as he stepped something felt as though it were tugging at him, trying to draw him back. He growled and kept moving. But the tugging continued, growing to a point where there was a painful feeling of being pulled in his chest, but Hao didn't stop. _

'_Do you really want to go?' The little voice halted Hao in his tracks and he turned in the darkness. Opacho stood before him, illuminated by a light that seemed to come from within._

'_What do you mean? It's calling me, can't you hear it?' Hao asked her._

'_I can. The question is, do you feel you are ready to go there yet?'_

'_The war is over, Opacho.' Hao replied. 'They don't need me anymore.'_

'_Don't they?' Opacho waved her hand and a picture appeared in the darkness. Hao moved towards it, peering into its depths. In it he could see his brother, eyes red and swollen, holding his limp hand, murmuring words Hao couldn't hear, but he could feel in his very soul._

_-Please don't go yet- Yoh pleaded with him over and over. Hao turned to Opacho, an agonized expression on his face._

'_That's what this is, isn't it?' He asked. 'The tugging inside me.'_

'_It is your bond with him, and if you go on it will be lost forever.'_

'_We were One, and then we were Two, but we are still One in some ways.' Hao said, biting his lip. 'I'm not sure I'm ready to just be One.'_

'_Then go back.' Opacho urged._

'_But what do I do? Everything I've worked for is now done, there's nothing left to be done in life.'_

'_You can __**live**__.' Opacho replied, and then disappeared. Hao looked once more to where the light beckoned, and then back into the darkness where he knew was the road back to life. In that moment he made his decision._

%&%&%&%

Yoh sat by his brother's motionless side, head listing to one side as he fought against the exhaustion that plagued him. He had not left his brother's side since the battle three days ago and had barely slept, wanting only to see his brother wake up. He slowly lost the battle to keep his eyes open though and his drooped onto his chest.

All the sudden a warm hand touched one of his. Yoh's head shot up and his eyes opened in surprise. He looked down at the hand that was now grasping his and saw the old, fading scars on it. Slowly, trembling with hope he lifted his head to look into his brother's tired, but smiling eyes.

"Hao... aniki." Yoh breathed, not quite able to believe his eyes.

"Hey, otouto." Hao replied huskily, squeezing Yoh's hand reassuringly. Yoh's eyes filled with tears and he leaned over the bed to grasp Hao in a tight embrace, shuddering sobs wracking his body. Hao gently pulled him closer, allowing the tears to soak into the robe he was wearing. When Yoh's sobs died out Hao grasped his shoulders and held him up in front of him.

"Feel better?" He asked, smiling. Yoh sniffed and nodded, rubbing his nose with one sleeve of the white shirt he was wearing. Hao carefully sat up, frowning when there was no pain. He parted the robe, staring down at his chest. There were still scars, but no new ones.

"What happened?" He asked Yoh.

"We used Heal-All on you." Yoh explained. "But, by the time we did it, you were already in a coma from losing so much blood. We thought that a transplant of blood would help so I gave you some of my blood, but you wouldn't wake up. It...it was like you'd given up." Yoh whispered, eyes filling with tears again.

"Oh, don't cry, otouto." Hao said, reaching out to place a hand on Yoh's face. "I didn't give up. I just thought I was done. But I wasn't, I was still needed. You needed me, and I... I need you too."

"Yeah?" Hao nodded, rubbing his thumb against Yoh's cheek.

"Yeah. You should sleep." Hao told his brother. Yoh nodded and then looked at Hao, eyes worried.

"If I go to sleep, will you still be here when I wake up?" In answer Hao opened his arms and Yoh hopped into the bed with him, both enfolding each other in a warm embrace.

"I promise." Hao whispered. Yoh sighed and rested his head on Hao's chest, feeling the strong heartbeat there. He fell asleep with the soothing feeling of Hao's arms wrapped securely around him.

%&%&%&%

When Yoh awoke he was in the exact same position he remembered falling asleep in. His head rose and fell with Hao's deep, slow breathing and he could still hear the reassuring beat of his heart. Suddenly Yoh's body shook has Hao let out a long, loud yawn. Yoh looked up just as Hao's eyes slowly blinked open.

"Hello, otouto." Hao greeted. Yoh sat up in the bed and hugged Hao.

"You're still here." He murmured, face buried in Hao's hair.

"I said I would be, didn't I?" Hao answered. Yoh nodded and pulled away.

"I guess you probably have questions about what happened while you were out, huh." Hao nodded and sat up.

"Yeah, first of all, who killed the Archangel?"

"Well, the thing is, four of us got him at once, so it's anyone's guess who's shot was the fatal one." Hao nodded.

"Well, I guess my next would be, did any of our guys die?" The look of sadness that crept over Yoh's face was all the answer Hao needed.

"We lost Silva, Bason and Goldva." The last name was like a punch in the chest for Hao. He closed his eyes as sorrow for the man that raised him rose up like a tidal wave. He knew the old man would fight, knew there was no way he could have stopped him, but knowing he was gone weighed heavily on him.

"He was a good man." Hao nodded and then after a long moment opened his eyes and spoke.

"Does that mean Lyserg's ok?"

"Yeah, him, Ren and Amidamaru are alright." Yoh replied. "Amidamaru's taken up leadership and is working to get things running properly. We're still experiencing resistance from places a little farther out, but most of the world is coming together."

"So, you think it will last?"

"Yes, I do. People are tired of living in fear, and those that can't adapt won't last too long I should think." Hao nodded and then took a look around the unfamiliar, brightly lit room.

"Where exactly are we?" Hao asked.

"Home." Yoh replied. "At least, my home. I hope it will become yours too."

"You mean this is where you lived before you joined the rebellion." Yoh nodded. "Wasn't your grandfather living here too?" Yoh grimaced slightly.

"Yes, and he's still here. He's under house arrest." Yoh explained. "Horohoro's here, and Ren, and Lyserg and Kalim, you remember him, right? A bunch of people from the southern settlements have decided to settle down here. They'll work, but this time as paid workers." Yoh smiled then, happiness permeating his whole being. "Things are changing fast, aniki."

Yoh's excited mood was infectious and Hao smiled back at him. "It would seem so." Hao mused. "Do you think we'll see anymore action?"

"Uh, probably, like I said, there's still some resistance. Amidamaru allowed me time off to wait for your recovery, but now that you're back on your feet we might get called out again."

"Makes sense." Hao said. "I think that when all the fighting is over, I'm going to retire."

"Retire?" Yoh repeated, obviously confused.

"From fighting, and that includes any training either." Hao replied. "I want to put that life behind me for good."

"Makes sense." Yoh admitted. Hao nodded and then shoved Yoh off the bed. Yoh yelped indignantly and was tackled by Hao as he leapt off the bed onto him. The two of them rolled around on the floor, engaging in a friendly wrestling session.

"What's going on in here?" Both looked up at the sound of the confused voice. Yoh happily wriggled out from under Hao and ran up to his mother to hug her.

"Kaa-san, look! Aniki's alright!" Yoh cried happily.

"I see that." Keiko replied, stroking Yoh's hair. "Now, why don't you go take a shower?" Yoh blinked up at her and seemed to see something in his eyes because he walked out of the room without another word. Hao turned away, staring out the window as his mother silently walked over to him.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" She said quietly, stealing up beside him. Hao didn't answer, didn't show any change of expression. Keiko looked down and away. "I'm so sorry-"

"Don't." Hao's quiet voice startled Keiko into silence. "Answer me this first." He paused a moment. "If it had been your choice, would you have kept me, in spite of all the grief it would bring?"

"Yes." Keiko whispered without hesitation. "I wanted nothing more than to be able to hold you in my arms, to claim you as my son."

"Then, you have nothing to be sorry for." Hao said with finality. He turned and stared directly into Keiko's wide, amazed eyes. "If there's one thing that Yoh taught me it's that life isn't in black and white, and I cannot hold you responsible for the decisions that others make."

"I should have tried though." Keiko murmured.

"Would that have done anything?" Hao asked. Keiko shook her head miserably. "Then don't spend time agonizing over it. It's time for the past to fade into the past." He sighed. "Time for a new beginning."

Keiko's eyes filled with tears and she wrapped her arms around Hao. This time Hao hugged her back.

Wolf: Review plz!


	33. Chapter 33

Wolf: I own nothing! Last chapter everyone!

Yoh wandered back to his room after his shower to find Hao rummaging in his closet, a frown creasing his normally stoic features. "Uh, aniki? What are you doing?" Hao looked up, visibly startled by Yoh's presence for a moment.

"I was looking for something to wear, something that would cover me up." He explained, gesturing to all the scars on his body.

"I can help you with that." Yoh replied, discarding his towel and tightening the sash on his bathrobe before sauntering over to the pile of clothes that Hao had already dumped on the floor. "Where did Kaa-san go?" Yoh asked as he rummaged around, looking for something of his that would suit Hao.

"She went back downstairs. Don't worry, we're alright now." Hao assured Yoh, sensing the younger twin's apprehension. Yoh visibly relaxed at that and smiled.

"We'll probably actually want to go shopping for you to find stuff that you deem suitable." He sighed reluctantly. "For now though, these should do alright for you." He showed Hao a pair of dark jeans and a black button-up work shirt. Hao nodded and took them, stripping off the yukata he was wearing and shimmying into his new clothes. Yoh chose a white t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans to wear.

"You ready to see your new home?" Yoh asked with a bright grin. Hao hesitated a moment, looking down at the exposed scars on his hands.

"I suppose it would look kind of awkward to wear gloves with this outfit, huh?" He murmured. Yoh reached over and took Hao's hands in his, rubbing the scars lightly with one thumb.

"They're just scars. They look like you work for a living, no one's going to ask about them, and even if they do, you have nothing to be ashamed about." Hao looked into his brother's earnest, gentle eyes and nodded slowly, grateful once again for Yoh's presence in his life. Yoh smiled and let go of his hand, gesturing for him to follow him downstairs.

"Monster." The softly growled, hateful word made Hao look up as they passed the living room. He stared at the small, wizened faced Cat sitting there glaring at him. He knew immediately it was his grandfather, the one that had him shipped off as soon as he was born.

He found, to his surprise, that he could find no anger in himself to unleash on this hateful man. Instead he found only pity, pity for a man that could never see just how great this world could be if all the species worked together instead of one working under the other. This man's world was ending, and because of his stubbornness he refused to join the new world that was emerging. He had lost all his power and was soon going to be alone, and that was punishment enough.

"Am I?" He simply said to the man that had started the cycle of pain that only Yoh's presence had erased, and turned his back on him, dismissing him from his mind. Yoh reached for his hand and squeezed it, thanking him for not starting anything.

"How long will he be here?" Hao asked quietly as they headed outside. Yoh shrugged.

"Amidamaru's setting up camps for followers of the Angels that refuse to change. They'll live comfortably, but they won't be allowed outside the camo walls. If Grandfather proves to be too belligerent to live here, we'll send him there. I still hope he'll come around though." Yoh admitted.

"Of course you do, he's still family, no matter what." Hao replied. Yoh gave him an odd look.

"I think almost dying has mellowed you." He said. Hao laughed at this.

"Maybe it did." He mused in reply.

"Hey, Yoh!" The twins' heads snapped up at the familiar voice and watched as Ren came sauntering over. "You still owe me a fight." The Cat groused, golden eyes narrowed in annoyance. "And I'm tired of waiting."

Yoh sighed and looked over at Hao, who gave him an amused look and a raised eyebrow in return. He turned to Ren and saw the seriousness in his eyes and sighed again. "Can't even let me enjoy the day for five minutes." He grumbled. "Can I at least get into something that will allow me to move around a little better?" Ren nodded and Yoh went back into the house, grumbling all the way.

"I heard about Bason." Hao told Ren. Ren nodded, suddenly finding the grass very interesting. "I'm sorry, I know he was a good friend to you. He was a good friend to us as well."

"Yeah well, this was the way he would have wanted to go out, so it's not too bad I guess." Ren replied gruffly, but a soft sniff gave him away. Hao patted him on the shoulder.

"I can guarantee you that he's in a good place now." He told the former bodyguard quietly. Ren inhaled shakily and then stood tall once more, nodding at Hao in thanks. Yoh came back out then, dressed in an old t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants.

"Ok, let's do this." He sighed unenthusiastically. Ren huffed and then launched himself at Yoh in a blur of speed. Yoh's muscles bunched and he moved to the side as Ren struck, avoiding his fist and driving a foot into the other boy's side.

Ren grunted and staggered, but kept his feet and began to circle Yoh, looking for some kind of opening. Yoh stood still, keeping Ren in his sights, but remaining completely relaxed. Ren lunged again, swerving at the last minute to come at Yoh from the side. Yoh was ready for him though and managed to grip his arm and throw him a good couple of feet away.

Ren hissed and scrambled up, racing at Yoh again. Yoh batted his fists away easily and then shot out one arm to grip Ren's head tightly. Ren struggled but Yoh manoeuvred him until he could get a chokehold on his neck and pin his body to the ground.

"Do you yield?" He panted. Ren cursed at him and struggled some more. Yoh simply tightened his grip on Ren's neck and waited for him to tire out. After a minute Ren slumped in his grasp and wheezed out

"Ok, I give." Yoh smiled and got up off him, offering a hand to him. Ren took it and grunted as Yoh pulled him to his feet. He could feel bruises starting to form on his neck where Yoh held him and on his side where he had been kicked.

"How about you?" Ren asked Hao as he panted. "Want to have a go?" Hao chuckled.

"Trust me, if you can't beat him, you can't beat me. No chance in hell." Hao laughed again. "I taught Yoh, and he still can't beat me." Yoh nodded in agreement. "Besides that, aside from helping Amidamaru squash the last of the resistance from the Angels, I'm retiring."

"Retiring?" Ren repeated. "What will you do?"

"Anything I want." Hao replied. It was true. The whole world was open to him. No more days of going hungry. No more wondering if today was going to be the last day you ever saw, and no more fighting. That was the most important thing of all in Hao's mind.

Two loud, musical roars made them look up as Cho and Kochi swooped down from the sky to land in front of their Chosen. Cho squeaked and nuzzled at Yoh's chest. Hao patted Kochi's head as she chirruped happily, rubbing her face against his arm.

"They were worried about you two." Lyserg called as he landed. "They've been very agitated the last couple of days, Kochi especially." Hao scratched Kochi under her chin.

"Did you know?" He asked her. "That I was hurt?" Kochi whistled at him and bumped him gently with her head.

"Dragons are somewhat bonded with their Chosen." Lyserg explained. "They can feel when their Chosen is dying or dead."

"Well, don't you worry girl. I don't plan on dying any time soon." Hao assured the red dragon.

%&%&%&%

'**The last of the Angels' resistance met it's end today, and Amidamaru, our esteemed Commander-in-Chief, has announced the nominees for High Council. Voting will take place-' **Yoh shut off the radio.

"Guess that's it then. It's over." He looked over at Hao, taking in his new ensemble of jeans, leather jacket and fingerless gloves. He looked like a tough but the gentle grin offset the look.

"I guess so." He replied, reaching out to ruffle Yoh's hair fondly. Yoh looked out into the fields where he could see a couple workers heading home for the day as the shadows grew long. He smiled and waved at one particularly familiar head of blue hair.

"So, what now?" Yoh asked Hao. Hao shrugged and leaned back.

"We could go back to school, or we could go visit our tribe in the south, or we could pack our backs, saddle up the girls and take a trip to who knows where." Hao turned to Yoh. "The point is now we have the choice."

"So, what do you choose?" Yoh asked, ever the eagerly following younger brother.

"I choose to live."

Wolf: That's it folks. It's over. Thanks for all your wonderful reviews and see you soon with a new story.


End file.
